Tharoor demands increase in budget allocation for higher education

NEW DELHI, Jul 28: Congress Member Shashi Tharoor today demanded increase in budget allocation for higher education pointing out that Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) were facing acute shortage of money.
Initiating debate on The Indian Institutes of Management Bill, 2017 in the Lok Sabha, the Congress Member while hailing autonomy proposed to be given with this Bill, said the HRD ministry was not getting enough support from Finance Ministry to fund higher education.
He welcomed the government declaring the IIMs as institutions of national importance but said the budget allocation for the IIMs was meagre.
The Indian Institutes of Management Bill, 2017 seeks to give autonomy to IIMs and power to grant degrees.
The Congress Member said the IIMs are facing shortage of funds and there were only three IIMs which figure among top 100 management schools in the world.
The Congress Member also expressed concern over the vacancies in IIMs. He said there has been a delay in setting up of Financing Agency for Higher education.
Earlier, HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said the Bill will give power to the IIMs to accord degrees and will  give them autonomy.
”Now, these institutes will not be required to take permission for any thing from the Government,” the Minister  said.
” It is a historic Bill,” he said.
The Bill seeks to declare certain Institutes of Management to be institutions of national importance with a  view to empower these institutions to attain standards of global excellence in management, management research and allied areas of knowledge. (UNI)