Click to play videoNew Delhi: Infosys founder NR Narayan Murthy's statement that the Indian Institutes of Technology are no longer the quality institutions that they were in the 60s and 70s, has ignited another debate. While his opinion is being criticised by many, some say that it is a wake up call that India's foremost educational institute has been ignoring for long.
After Union Minister Jairam Ramesh, it's now Narayan Murthy who has questioned the quality of engineers that the premier college is producing. Murthy, an IIT Kanpur alumnus was addressing a group of former IITians in New York when he said, "There is a need to overhaul the selection criteria for students seeking admission."
Murthy's comments have not gone down well with current students and faculty.
Narayan Murthy blamed coaching centres for the deteriorating quality of students. But teachers at IIT were quick to distance themselves from such institutes.
Sanjeev Sanghi, President, Faculty Forum, IIT Delhi, said, "IIT does not have anything to do with coaching centres. The number of coaching centres is increasing due to the increasng number of students wanting admissions."
Murthy also compared his alma mater to Harvard and MIT. Faculty and students called it an unfair comparison and blamed the government for the lack of funding.
Murthy also lamented the poor English-speaking and social skills of most IITians.
Criticism is never easy to stomach but if the IITs act on Murthy's feedback and take it with a pinch of salt, they may produce many more Narayan Murthys someday.
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest)
More on IBNLive Right Now
MOST SHARED
PHOTOGALLERY
