Talks call before IIT reforms
The panel of IIT directors that has recommended relying more on board examination scores than entrance test performances in picking students to engineering schools has also cautioned the government against rushing ahead with the reforms without adequate consultations.
In its report to human resource development minister Kapil Sibal, the panel has recommended detailed nationwide consultations before proceeding with reforms that can change the face of admissions to the IITs and all other engineering colleges.
The panel has recommended scrapping the IIT-Joint Entrance Examination, the All India Engineering Entrance Examination and state-specific entrance tests, and replacing them with a single aptitude test.
The panel has recommended that the IITs give 70 per cent weightage to board examination marks and 30 per cent weightage to performances in the aptitude test.
But it has advised caution in implementing the reforms. The panel has suggested detailed consultations and workshops with the state governments, other top engineering institutions like the National Institutes of Technology, and private universities.
The panel and the HRD ministry will also need to convince state governments that the move to end state-specific engineering tests is not against their interests. Education is a concurrent subject under the Constitution and state governments may object, arguing that the Centre is encroaching on their turf by suggesting state tests be replaced with a national examination.
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