IIM Ranchi academic session from June/July

The academic session for the first batch of Indian Institute of Management, Ranchi will start in June/July this year and IIM, Kolkata will be the mentor.

"Between 60 and 80 students will be taken for the first academic year in Ranchi, which is one of the six centres chosen for new IIMs," its Chairman of the board of governors R C Bhargava told a news conference here today.

"IIM, Ranchi will be of the standard of IIM, Kolkata, the oldest one in the country," he said, adding the students would get audio-video facility to follow classes in the Kolkata institute which is a pioneer in distant learning.

The advertisement for admission would be given by the month-end and those who score 95 per cent or above in the 2009 CAT would be eligible, he said.

The process for constitution of the board would be taken within the next one month and the fee structure would be Rs three lakh per year, which is lower than in Kolkata.

Classes will be held at the Suchna Bhavan and the decision on the use of the Mega Sports Complex here will be taken only after the end of National Games, dates for which is yet to be announced.

Asked whether there would be any special reservation for tribals in the institute, considering Jharkhand has 26 per cent tribal population, Bhargava said the institute will follow the Centre's reservation policy.

The government has alloted 220 acres to the institute, he added.

Bhargava, who is also chairman of Maruti Udyog, said he would use his experience in Maruti to make the IIM Ranchi a model institute.

Recollecting his association with IIM Lucknow and IIM Kolkata and heading a review committee on IIM that gave its report last year, he expressed hope that his nearly 27 years of association with the IIMs would also help in making a model institute here.

Bhargava was here to select infrastructure for the IIM Ranchi ahead of the admission for the first batch of students.