Two cheers for Arjun

Arjun Singh8217;s decision to ditch his first instinct and allow the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, to establish an overseas campus is welcome. Last month, the Human Resource Development Ministry had sought to spike IIM-B8217;s proposal to set up base in Singapore by citing the gap in local applications and seats. The minister has, by the evidence of Wednesday8217;s green signal, unbundled the contradictions of that initial opposition. Allowing India8217;s elite schools of higher learning to grow and expand 8212; and in that process meet opportunities within the country and beyond 8212; brings immense benefits. It could, most importantly, augment the schools8217; budgets and facilities 8212; and their capacity to meet those unmet aspirations that were ironically cited in that first denial of permission.

Having freed the IIMs from bureaucratic shackles, however, Arjun Singh must heed the reformist demands of those aspirations. The IIMs have this week announced they will take in roughly 10-15 per cent more students from 2007. Such incremental additions will in no way satisfy domestic demand. Instead of heeding a lingering inclination to micromanage the affairs of higher education, the HRD ministry must deliver a forward-looking strategy. That strategy must begin getting answers to these questions? How can private and public involvement in education be synchronised to meet aspirations and opportunities? How should quality education be priced? How could opportunities be made available beyond the barriers of class and community? Through old, ad-hoc adherence to quotas and reservation, or by enabling a greater diversity to compete for the best colleges on the basis of merit?

This week, Arjun Singh stirred enough to invite hope. He must seize that goodwill and instigate reform beyond the growth-oriented objectives of the IIMs.