After Prez's nod, IIMs get set to offer degrees under Act

With the President's assent to the IIM Bill having come as a New Year surprise, the IIMs have initiated talks within themselves and with the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) on the Act.

However, IIMs are of the view that the Act is not yet operational until rules framed by the MHRD and regulations formulated by respective IIM Boards are placed in the Parliament for approval.

"Technically, the Bill is not yet operational until rules are framed by the Ministry of HRD and regulations are formulated by the respective IIM Boards, and to be placed in Parliament for their approval. We are in the process of finalising our regulations," said G Raghuram, director of IIM Bangalore.

Moreover, given the expedited assent by the President, IIMs are also seeking clarity on whether the changes need to be incorporated in the ongoing academic session or not.

"We thought this (President's assent) was going to take some time. Most of us are unprepared. Hence, it will take some time in terms of formation of rules and regulations. We are going to take a joint decision. We will take some time to study it more, then come together again and share ideas on the transition," said the director of one of the IIMs on the condition of anonymity.

While IIM directors had met recently in December, the premier B-schools are yet to study the Act in detail to understand its implications.

"We are looking forward to receiving a copy of the IIM Bill from the Government of India," said an IIM-Ahmedabad spokesperson, adding that the director-in-charge Errol D'Souza would share his views after reviewing the Bill.

While Raghuram said that the institute has begun work on finalising the regulations, sources at IIM Kozhikode believe the rules, being formulated by the MHRD, may take almost a month. 

"A lot has already been initiated. There have been both video conferences and personal meetings with the Minister and the MHRD secretary. All the IIM directors have met in August 2017 at IIM Bangalore and in December 2017 at IIM Lucknow to discuss issues of common concern. Apart from this, all the IIM directors are in constant communication with one another," said Raghuram.

However, according to the director of one of the IIMs quoted earlier, the institutes are seeking clarity on other issues. "What we are clear about is that the government is forming the rules and we are forming the regulations. But, since all of us were discussing this for the next convocation, it needs to be seen now whether we can give degree this year itself or not," the director said.

Now that the President has given his assent to the IIM Bill, making it an Act of the Parliament, the IIMs can award degrees, apart from the Board being empowered to decide on the chairperson and the director through internal search and selection committee processes. Further, a formal review of the director and faculty body's performance can be conducted by the Board and the institution's performance by an external review committee.