Union Minister for Human Resource Development Smriti Irani has asked the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) to develop a framework for ranking management institutions across the world in accordance with the priorities of the developing countries.
They have also been asked to help domestic institutions pursue academic excellence to achieve the goalposts set by the National Ranking Framework.
Ms. Irani, who participated in a conclave of here on Sunday, interacted with chairpersons and directors of 13 IIMs. A press release said that apart from the proposed ranking framework, the interaction also revolved around innovations and initiatives to scale up research in the IIMs, with focus on socially relevant research, to have a greater impact on the implementation of national policies.
The Union Minister has set out a 13-point agenda for the IIMs to bring their management expertise to national development goals and come up with strategies for making the country “manpower and teacher ready.”
The IIMs have been asked to partner with the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Central Universities to create a mechanism for a global talent pool of eminent persons to contribute their expertise to institutions in the country.
A ‘knowledge consortium’ was also mooted in the interaction to bring together various institutions for credit transfer and twinning programmes.
The release said the Minister had asked the institutes to develop a special programme for students from the north-eastern States similar to the one developed by the IITs called ‘Ishan Vikas’.
She said the IIMs needed to work with local industries and communities to enhance their management capacity.
