E-Paper
PM favours increase of seats in IITs
The suggestion to increase seats in elite institutions has been made to find a way out of quota problem.
Apparently keeping in mind the ongoing controversy over reservation, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday favoured increase in the number of seats at all levels of technical education from ITIs to IITs.
"We have to increase the number of seats at all levels of technical education from ITIs to IITs and also improve the quality of training at all levels," he said inaugurating the campus of the Birla Institute of Science and Technology (BITS) in Panaji.
The Prime Minister made no mention of the reservation controversy but the suggestion to increase the number of seats in elite educational institutions has been made from various quarters to find a way out of the quota problem.
"Graduates from some of our best institutions are increasingly being sought by employers worldwide. This accentuates the supply demand gap at home. What is worrying is that we have this gap even at the bottom of the pyramid," Singh said.
The government has taken up a project to upgrade 500 ITIs and the Confederation of Indian Industries has come forward to help them, he said adding if required, government should be ready to set up more of such institutions.
Lauding the role of corporate and industrial houses in the education field, Singh said the overwhelming initiative of the private sector would act as a propelling force in this direction.
Complimenting BITS, Pilani, he said the country was proud of institutions in the private sector.
"In Manipal, in Vellore, in Bangalore, in Pune and in many other places, our corporate sector has created institutions that have acquired a global standing. I sincerely hope that more and more business houses will come forward to invest in our knowledge economy".
