B-schools welcome compromise between UGC and AICTE

Institutes offering Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) courses have welcomed the compromise formula reached by the ministry of human resource development (MHRD), according to which the University Grants Commission (UGC) will regulate B-schools offering a masters' degree in management and are affiliated to universities, while the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) will regulate independent B-schools offering PGDM.

Private B-schools, however, want the decision to be formalised and announced soon. A senior official at a private B-school said the decision was informally conveyed to them by the MHRD. The decision was taken after a Supreme Court order had left AICTE in the role of an advisor, a shift from being a regulator earlier.

AICTE Chairman Shankar S Mantha said he was not aware of a decision. "AICTE is not fighting for PGDM institutions alone. We are here for technical education. As an Act of Parliament, AICTE's powers must be restored."

H Chaturvedi, director, Birla Institute of Management Technology, said: "This is a good move but we want this to be formalised."

With Common Admission Test results being announced on Tuesday, B-schools wanted a speedy resolution to this issue, as AICTE's permission is needed to run programmes and for expansion of seats. These institutes were planning to approach the Supreme Court, as the imbroglio threatened to derail their plans for the next academic session.

Chaudhari Prasad, chairman-admissions at TA Pai Management Institute, said: "The general feeling is that independent B-schools should not be overseen by the UGC. But we cannot comment unless the government comes out with an announcement. The students should not be affected by all this confusion."

Private B-schools are also expected to meet the MHRD later this month. They propose the creation of an All India Board of Management Study to specifically deal with PGDM courses. 

Pritam Singh, director of International Management Institute, Delhi, said: "MHRD has realised the concerns of PGDM institutions and we welcome this move. The way forward now will be to provide more autonomy and freedom to the PGDM institutions."

Last month, to address the absence of AICTE as a regulator, UGC had proposed independent B-schools, which follow their own curriculum and set their own course fees, would also be required to obey the guidelines and seek affiliation to universities that function under UGC and adopt their syllabus. Following protests by the institutes, the UGC decided not to extend the regulations to independent B-schools, which have been worried about losing their autonomy.

AICTE Chairman Shankar S Mantha said he was not aware of a decision. He said he had maintained that AICTE's powers be restored. "AICTE is not fighting for PGDM institutions alone. We are here for technical education. As an Act of Parliament, AICTE's powers must be restored."

The apex court ruling, which left the AICTE as an advisor, was the result of a dispute between Bharathidasan University in Tamil Nadu and AICTE over the need for approval of technical courses in colleges that come under the state university and, therefore, under the UGC.