Cut in fee won146;t hit quality: Joshi

He criticised the management of IIMs saying the teacher-student ratio was incredulously high as compared to institutions elsewhere in the world. 8216;8216;In IIM-Ahmedabad it is 1:5, IIM-Bangalore 1:4 and IIM-Calcutta 1:7, whereas the same in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA and Harvard Business School, considered the best management institutions in the world, is only 1:10,8217;8217; he pointed out.

He refuted the charge of meddling with the autonomy of IIMs and said autonomy did not mean licence to do as they pleased. 8216;8216;Autonomy is safe and the funds are safe. They should manage themselves well,8217;8217; he said. The Ministry, said Joshi, had asked former CAG V.K. Shunglu to go into the financial needs of the IIMs and any shortfall would be filled by the Government. 8216;8216;I am now paying Rs 140 crore to these institutions as against a grant of Rs 25-30 crore earlier,8217;8217; he said, adding all IIMs are now managed by high professionals and not politicians.