IIM-Ahmedabad wrests autonomy from Centre

The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A) has won a decade-long battle for autonomy, with HRD minister Kapil Sibal approving dramatic amendments to the institution’s memorandum of association (MOA) with the government. The amendments that end the government’s powers to handpick the director of the country’s top business school and give it unprecedented financial autonomy follow a decade-long battle between the institute and successive governments.

Directors are at present short-listed by a search-cum-selection committee set up by the government in coordination with the IIM’s board of governors. This gives the government the opportunity to influence the selection of the candidates. The amended MOA, which has now been sent to the Ministry of Law for vetting before a notification is released, completely eliminates the government’s role in short-listing candidates for the director’s post. From now on, the board will shortlist three candidates, while the government can only pick one from those names.

The amendment will also allow the IIM to purchase and sell assets without seeking the government’s approval. This will cut through layers of red-tape that delay key acquisitions and investments planned by the IIM. The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has also given its nod to a proposal to increase the revenue generated for the IIM through membership of its sponsoring society. The IIM can now charge hefty donations in exchange for membership of the society.

This proposal earlier raised concern that some people might enjoy influence over the board of governors simply by buying society membership. Sibal had advised the IIM to put the proposal on hold. But the IIM later convinced the government that only two nominees of the society are members of the board, and industrialists or individuals who join the society won’t be in a position to influence key decisions.

Source: Hindustan Times, July 17, 2011

With Rs 20 in pocket, IIM-B students live the life of have-nots

Just Rs. 20 in pocket. Surviving on single banana for breakfast, rice dish from roadside vendor for lunch, biscuits for tea time. Not a life that you would expect the future CEOs from the most prestigious B-school of the country to lead. But this is what some of the Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIM-B) students experienced for a day early this week — just to know what it is to be poor.

As part of their elective programme ‘Inclusive Business Models’, 75 students were exposed to another world — that of people who live with just Rs. 20 per day (the below poverty line cut-off). The students, in groups of five, went to different slums in and around Bangalore, interacted with the slum-dwellers, trying to understand their lives and finally come up with suitable business solutions that can help them. Interestingly, some of them even went on to experiment what it is to live with only Rs. 20 to get a hands-on experience. “My strategy was to have two meals — Rs 10 each. But I wanted to make sure it was wholesome so I do not feel hungry. I could not get anything from campus for that much.”

“So I ventured into the smaller lanes outside the campus. I could get three akki rotis and two bananas within Rs. 10. I know it’s not possible for me to survive for a long time like this, but may be for a day or two. It was a life-time experience, it makes you realise the value of money,” said Justin T. “Mine was an abject failure. I found it was impossible to live with Rs. 20. I did not touch my car, used the mobile only to receive calls, went out to Bilekahalli market to get bananas, ate from roadside vendors, got low quality vegetables, yet it did not fit in,” said Varun Sharma.

While some gave up smoking for the day as cigarettes were expensive, there were others who gave up on luxuries like using a laptop. From understanding the aspirations of slum-dwellers to sending their children to English medium schools, students got a peek into the lives of the poor.

Source: The Times of India, July 17, 2011

Four medical colleges from Coal India soon

Government-owned Coal India Ltd. (CIL) has planned to establish four medical colleges and an engineering college in the mining areas of its subsidiary companies. This, coincidentally, comes at a time when the sector saw some controversy over the proposed government bill to compel mining companies to share at least a quarter of their annual profits with those affected by its operations.

“The colleges are in the pipeline. One is with Mahanadi Coalfields and the company has already formed a trust for a medical college at Talcher in Orissa. They are in the process of getting approval from the Medical Council of India (MCI). If approvals come soon, we will start work on the college — which would see an investment of Rs. 60-100 crore (Rs. 6 million-1 billion), within a year,” said R. Mohan Das, Director (Personnel and Industrial Relations) of CIL.

The other three medical colleges would be under Bharat Coking Coal (BCCL) at Dhanbad, Central Coalfields (CCL) at Ranchi (both in Jharkhand) and Eastern Coalfields (ECL) at Asansol in West Bengal. The proposed engineering college would also be under CCL, near Ranchi. The investment for these projects are also expected on the same lines.

“For us, the advantage is that no big investment would be needed, as our major hospitals in these areas have more than 250 beds. Money will go for building classrooms, administrative buildings, hostel facilities and in buying new medical equipment,” Das said. The company has 86 hospitals and 423 dispensaries in its mining areas, with 1,524 doctors, 5,835 beds, 640 ambulances and 31 equipped mobile vans.

One of its subsidiaries, South Eastern Coalfields (SECL), is already operating engineering college in partnership with the Chhattisgarh government near Raipur. The investment from the company was around Rs 10 crore, while the government operates the institution. When asked whether the proposed colleges would be in partnership with some other company or state governments, Das said, “These things would be worked out later by the trusts and subsidiaries.”

Along with other mining institutes under its belt, CIL is also running an Industrial Training Centre at Bolpur in West Bengal in a tie-up with Damodar Valley Corporation and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL), where the total investment is Rs. 23 crore (Rs. 230 million). The company funds 536 schools in four different categories — project schools (55), privately managed schools with grant packages under ECL, BCCL and CCL (284), private committee-managed educational institutes (72) and other schools where occasional grants are given (125).

Apart from this, the company says it funds 100 scholarships for students from below poverty line families who got admissions in major government medical and engineering colleges. “We sponsor tuition as well as hostel fees, plus a Rs. 10,000 package allowance per year. Moreover, these scholarships are available for 25 additional students from the families of land losers in mining areas,” Das added.

Source: Business Standard, July 17, 2011