Newsmaker: Ashok Misra

Taking the burden off entrance

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When Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani decided to set up a committee of eminent people in October to review the entrance examination for admission to Indian Institutes of Technology, the decision to name Ashok Misra as its head was an obvious one.

Having headed the board for admission to IITs, Misra knew the drill of the Joint Entrance Examination, the passport for entry to IITs, all too well. In less than a month, he submitted the report, suggesting introduction of an aptitude test in place of the current system to discourage the 'coaching culture' among aspirants. He has even recommended setting up a watchdog to regulate coaching institutions in general for all entrance tests.

The response to his proposals has been overwhelming. The ministry has seen a flurry of comments from all over the country. "We had anticipated some reaction. But this was unexpected," says a committee member. The government is now collating these responses before arriving at a final decision.

Academics has been Misra's lifelong passion. Those who know him describe him "as a man in a hurry". "He likes getting things done. Any task given to him is assured to be done in time," says a committee member.

A distinguished engineer and scientist, he has been a teacher and a researcher for over three decades. He holds a B.Tech degree in chemical engineering from IIT Kanpur, a Masters in chemical engineering from Tufts University and a Ph.D. in polymer science and engineering from University of Massachusetts.

After working for Monsanto Chemical for three years, he joined IIT Delhi in 1977 where he served as the head of the Centre for Polymer Science and Engineering and the dean for alumni affairs.

From 2000 and 2008, he was the director of IIT Bombay, and his focus was on building the institute's research capabilities, says a faculty member. "Funding , published researches and the number of Ph.D students, all increased significantly," he adds.

At IIT Bombay, he is also credited for creating a culture of entrepreneurship on the campus . The institute's incubator for technology businesses was set up during his term. Besides, he has guided several doctoral thesis and undertaken sponsored research projects and industrial consultancy assignments. He has six patents against his name and has written over 100 articles in international publications. Misra currently is the chairman of Intellectual Ventures India, a US-based patent purchasing company in Bengaluru.

His most far-reaching contribution to education, though, may be still to come. If his recommendations are accepted, they could change the way students prepare for IITs forever.