New Delhi:
Done with school exam reforms for now, Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal has shifted his focus to the IITs.
It's considered the Mecca of Higher education. A place of learning that has produced some of the finest Indian minds.
But for the last two months, IITs have been in the headlines for the wrong reasons - teachers protesting against the minister for better pay and more autonomy.
However, on Monday when Sibal walked into the IIT campus, the expectations were high. And the minister didn't disappoint.
In a clear roadmap for India's most premier engineering institutes, the ministry has appointed India nuclear boss Dr Anil Kakodar as the head of one of the two committees set up to make IITs more competitive globally.
The committees will also work on a vision statement for IITs by 2020, and will submit their report on it within six months.
"Anil Kakodkar would be heading one of those that will completely overhaul the system in terms of research etc," said Sibal.
The step has been welcomed even by the skeptical faculty federation.
"Dr Anil Kakodkar is a very respected man, and we have high regard for him. We have full faith that whatever he'll suggest, will be in IIT's best interests," said Professor Moorthy, IIT Delhi.
Also, there's a move to check the growth of coaching centers, which the minister described as teaching shops!
No autonomy and no paytonomy, on Monday, Sibal was all about better global positioning for one of India's biggest brands.