It is good that there are so many IITs coming up in India. And why do I say that. It is because the government can guarantee superior investment to curate good education with IITs.

Most talk about education standards going down in the IITs with so many new IITs happening. Why will it go down? How will the quality of IIT Bombay go down if a new IIT comes up anywhere else in India? The argument does not make sense to me. People said the same thing when additional IIMs were sanctioned. But post their initial teething problems, all of them are picking up.  

Yes, I agree that there are various issues that need to be kept in mind while setting up new IIMs and IITs.  Infrastructure, faculty, facilities, industry interface, attracting talented students and of course the overall excellence need to be sorted. But IITs spell good education in India. They are world famous institutes and they are known to nurture some of the brightest minds in India. They are government run, so in effect when more IITs come up; it means engineering education is getting a boost. Who else can or will invest to provide quality education if not the government?  

When new IITs are set up, yes, there will be teething problems but eventually they will turn out well with guidance from the board. The new ones are mentored and groomed by the older IITs and there is enough hand-holding to make sure the new ones are managed well. 

So irrespective of a new IIT or an old one, an IIT education will make a difference, definitely much more than any of the top rung private engineering institutes in India right now.

Also, look at how many good private engineering colleges are around. I’m not saying they are not there, but they are very few in number.  To keep education going at all times, especially with increasing population of engineering aspirants wanting to join technology bandwagon, and keeping it of good quality you need a strong back-up. A good support system and that can only be supported by a body like the government.

So I’m all in favour of the government setting up more IITs and IIMs. It will only help take education to all parts of country, yet keep the quality superior than what is available right now.

Let the initial problems happen – they will only die down after a while – it will be worth it. IITs have some of the best faculty today and there is nothing better than good faculty to keep your institute flying high.