Sibal is meeting with professors of IITs. I wish that all the malice between them will die. And the professors will return happier to their classes and will never have to teach with empty stomach. However, I do also wish both the parties to think over and act.
Sibal and his ministry must not interfere with IITs and for that matter all the institutes of excellence, and grant the necessary autonomy that can make them globally competitive in every respect.
IITs professors must build themselves on their own as the best and respected. Will they focus on producing a generation of engineers that take pride in their engineering skills and not hanker for getting into management institutes just for getting a better salary package? Will IITs be known for their innovations, researches, patents, and papers? Is it not a shame that India in last 62 years of independence has not produced any Nobel in science subjects?
India has hardly any internationally known product. Indians at large hardly know few professors of IITs by name. Are the laboratories of IITs lacking facilities? If the answer is yes from the professors, let Sibal provide that or let the professors come out with whatever they need publicly just as they did about their demands on salary and promotions. Let the people of India know why they can’t produce the best researches that the country needs.
And I request Sibal to change the system of awarding Ph.Ds in Indian universities, instead of branding some as third class. Sibal will be respected and remembered in the scientific community, if he can lay a system that can bring respect to all the degrees and awards offered in India. Have you heard of a third class in Ph.D? I have not. But Sibal has some in his mind when he said in an interview, “I can’t allow third class PhD holders to teach in IITs/IIMs.”
Let me convince the professors of IITs that they must work hard as they expect their students to do to keep the flag of IITs flying higher. And the route of that is through hard work, breakthrough innovations, and encouraging entrepreneurships what MIT and Berkley did.
And with a due respect for the professors, I wish Sibal appoints a reputed consultancy, say under Rajat Gupta of McKinsey, to survey the opinions of the present students, alumni, and executives in India about the professors of IITs and IIMs. Let me respectfully convey it to the teachers that many with whom I have spoken are not having very good opinion.
दृष्टिकोण - Indra's Viewpoint 