Rajya Sabha passes Indian Institute of Management Bill, 2017

The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday passed the Indian Institute of Management Bill, 2017.

The Bill, which was passed by the Lok Sabha, declares 20 existing Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) as institutions of national importance and confers on them the power to grant degrees.

Under the Bill, the autonomy envisaged for IIMs exceeds the autonomy granted to other institutions of higher education such as IITs (Indian Institutes of Technology) and AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences).

According to the Bill, the Board of Governors will be the executive body of each IIM, comprising up to 19 members. It will nominate 17 board members including eminent persons, faculty members and alumni. The remaining two members will be nominees from the central and state governments, respectively. The Board will appoint its own Chairperson.

The Board of Governors will appoint the Director of each IIM. A search committee will recommend names for the post of the Director. The Director is eligible for variable pay, to be determined by the Board.

The Academic Council of each IIM will determine the: (i) academic content; (ii) criteria and process for admission to courses; and (iii) guidelines for conduct of examinations.

A coordination forum will be set up, which will include representation from the 20 IIMs. It will discuss matters of common interest to all IIMs.

Currently, the central government has a role in the functioning of IIMs which includes appointment of the Chairperson of their Boards, their Directors and pay to the Director. In contrast, the Bill extends greater autonomy to the Board in the performance of these functions.