CURRENT ISSUE JUNE 05, 2006

PICTURE SPEAK

HEADING THE QUEUE: IIT, Delhi students

Not surprisingly, IIT Delhi manages to reassert its pre-eminent position time and again. It has emerged as the topper in the engineering stream for the second time in a row. And as always, the IITs have managed to corner most of the ranks this year too, with IIT Kanpur-up from No. 4 last year-nudging IIT Mumbai from second to third.

Staying ahead is not easy. When it comes to comparing the IITs with other engineering institutes, it is the system of open electives that enables them to maintain their lead. Almost half of the 180 credits students have to complete are not specific to any discipline. So if you are a student of biochemical engineering, you could find yourself studying the philosophy of language and even algorithms along with DNA technology. This enables them to get dual specialisation in any field of their choice, a feature that can work wonders in the age of multi-specialisation and multi-tasking. Take Mekala Krishnan, a final-year mechanical engineering student at IIT Delhi, who has got a lucrative job offer for a business analyst's post from the consultancy firm McKinsey & Co, even as she is toying with the idea of doing a Master's in fluid mechanics at Cornell University, US.

TOP 10

1 IIT, Delhi 2 IIT, Kanpur 3 IIT, Mumbai 4 IIT, Kharagpur 5 IIT, Chennai 6 IIT, Roorkee 7 Delhi College of Engineering, Delhi 8 NIT Karnataka, Surathkal 9 Institute of Technology, BHU 10 NIT, Warangal National rankings are derived from a combination of perceptual and factual scores. Colleges that did not provide factual information were not ranked. (-) Not ranked in the 2005

A lot of research and innovation also gives these institutes an edge. IIT Kanpur's achievements in computer science are well known with its research initiatives at Media Lab Asia, 3i network and ISRO projects, which hit the headlines every now and then. Similarly, IIT Mumbai has constantly striven to ensure freedom and flexibility in its learning programmes. The state-of-the-art infrastructure that it provides only makes things easier.

Competition within the IITs also helps add value. "We follow the 24x7 system, which emphasises the importance of learning round the clock, and even outside the classroom," says Prasad. He attributes the edge that IIT Delhi has over other institutes to its unique curriculum, which, he says, is "ever evolving". If a professor doesn't like what he is teaching, he can change it altogether provided he can convince his peers about it. Unlike large universities where bureaucratisation can retard the process by years, it is a question of getting past the senate here, a process that doesn't take more than a few months, says Prasad.

Another unique feature of IIT Delhi is the number of post-graduate seats, which is almost 30 per cent higher than its capacity for undergraduate studies. IIT Delhi accepts 700 post-graduate students versus 550 undergraduates every year. This gives an opportunity to motivated students who have trained at second-rung institutes to become truly world class. The institute does its bit for qualitative enhancement of the industrial workforce.

For the past six months, IIT Delhi has been working on a roadmap to reach new goals. It is more like a wishlist, says Prasad. This is captured in a document which will reflect achievements vis-à-vis requirements that are essential to figure in hallowed circles not just within the country but outside as well.

Among the many things IIT Delhi can look forward to is a building that will house its School of Information Technology. The Bharti School of Telecommunication, the only such school in the country, has recently been completed with two state-of-the-art laboratories.

As things stand, there are shortfalls in investments for research purposes and for getting new faculty members. While the money is slowly flowing in, the volumes leave a lot to be desired. But IIT Delhi is confident of overcoming the crunch. As the No. 1, it must.

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