The Hindu Business Line : A primary solution at IIM

THE stand off between Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A), and the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) on the core issue of autonomy and the related one of fee cut now appears to be headed towards finding a compromise formula. The sabre-rattling by both sides is now giving way to words of rapprochement and the cold war may well thaw in the summer of 2004.

Even as the détente has generated much debate on the ways and means of thrashing out a middle path that least hurts both the parties, the indications are that no pro-active decision would be taken till the new government moves into place. And the buzz is that as the dialogues are to be held after the Lok Sabha polls, it may not necessarily be the same incumbent at the helm of the HRD Ministry. However, there were a few compromise gurus outside the Institute gates who felt let down as their brand of compromise formula could not be put into practice. Having honed their skills in past events such as the co-operative banking scam, they could be seen pleading with the students to have a look at what they had to offer. A few experts, while refusing to show their full hand, allowed one a peek into what could have been in store for the management students.

The most obvious spin-off, one guru said (could not fathom why it was not crystal clear to all) was the scope for establishing a direct affiliation between some of the pre-primary schools across the country and the IIMs. The general idea was that those parents who now gladly shell out Rs 50,000-Rs 1,00,000 for kindergarten would get their wards to study at the IIMs free of charge as the desired fee of Rs 30,000 was sure to dip even further in the coming years.

The advantage in tying up with the pre-primary schools, he said, would be that these institutions dispensing education to the young ones would fund the `extraneous' expenses at the IIMs later on. This would include cost of books, study material including access to top-of-the-shelf libraries and unlimited Internet access. Then there would be the issue of paying for the entire faculty, which would be of the visiting kind as there would be no full-time faculty by that time, he reasoned.

For other amenities such as hostel rooms, telephones, televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, air-conditioners and select cuisine for the students, there would be corporate entities and prospective employers vying for sponsorship. It could only be a win-win situation for all as the IIM admission tests also had the scope for much alteration, another expert said. Meanwhile, there was immense scope for more transparency at the IIMs and a beginning could be made with the consulting assignments, it was pointed out. This was where the ministry representatives could work in tandem with the faculty, he argued.

On being asked whether the charm in studying at one of these IIMs would not stand diminished, thus spake the gurus, sotto voce, "Here comes the need for good management skills. It is all about striking that fine balance between demand and supply and converting half-chances into opportunities. One has to pay a price for everything and fee cuts are no exception".

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