New Delhi: With alumni like Nandan Nilekani, Narayan Murthy, Arun Sarin and Vikram Pandit, IIT is often described as India's brain bank.  Now the institute that shaped these famous minds is in trouble.

Across India, in every city where there is an IIT, professors, 1500 in all, went on a hunger strike.  They say they deserve more money and more respect. "This is our way of protesting.  We will go hungry to classes, we will go hungry to our meetings," says Bharat Shah, a professor on strike at IIT Mumbai.

IIT faculty points out that their salaries are lower than their counterparts at the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).

A new rule introduced by the government restricts promotions every year to 40 per cent of faculty, based on performance.

IIT professors want that decision reversed, they also want Rs 15,000 per month when they take time off for research.

Kapil Sibal, the Minister for Human Resource Development, counters that IITs are funded completely by the government, and so the professors' demands are out of line.  He also objects to their method: "Have you seen anywhere future Nobel laureates going on a hunger strike?"

Most IIT graduates start their careers with salaries that many of their professors will never earn.  The average starting salary of an IIT graduate is 7 lakhs a year.  An associate professor at IIT makes 5 lakhs a year.

Tags: hunger, IIT, India, strike