13 IIMs to offer MBA degrees Bill to be Introduced soon in Budget session

The bill which would allow all the 13 IIMs functioning in the country to give away MBA degrees instead of diplomas to the students would get proposed in the parliament during the budget session. The government after announcing it last year is finally ready with the legislative and is going to table it soon in the Parliament. The bill has been vetted by the law ministry and is currently undergoing some minor rewriting, after which it would ultimately get tabled.

The law ministry has suggested changes in the language of the bill and the spirit of the bill has remained unchanged. Unlike IITs, which gets governed by their own Act of Parliament, the IIMs are a different ball game. The IIMs are registered societies and therefore it awards postgraduate diplomas at the completion of the two year programmes, instead of an MBA. The proposed bill would provide national importance status to the IIMs and would make them able to give away degrees.

The problem arose with a diploma instead of degree to students when they try and get admission at foreign universities for further research opportunities. They have to get a certificate from their respective institutes, that the certificate that they possess is equivalent of MBA degree in India. The bill would further attract more foreign students to get admission in India and would help IIMs gain global recognition.

Along with the provision that the IIMs would be allowed to offer degree courses to its students, the IIMs would now be governed by a coordination forum, just as the IIT council. But there would be greater representation from the institutes instead of vested interests of politicians and bureaucrats. This bill would also allow the government to take decision on the removal of a concerned Director of the IIMs, if his/her incompetency to the post is proved.