You’ve a larger role to play: HRD to IIMs

According to ministry sources, the Shunglu committee, which probed the finances of the IIMs, might have exaggerated the ‘‘sorry state of management’’, but the directors have been told that they will still need to introduce some ‘‘checks and balances’’ in the system.

The IIMs have been advised to pass on their accounts for scrutiny to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India to make their systems foolproof.

Besides, the IIMs at Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Kolkata, which had taken the lead in pioneering management education in the country, have been asked to help the government in setting up new IIMs.

The Ministry foresees the need for more IIMs in the north (possibly Chandigarh), north-east (Guwahati or Shillong) and along the east coast (Bhubaneswar, Vishakhapatnam or Chennai).

The government hopes that the three bigger IIMs would be involved in setting up one new institute each. ‘‘There could be a mother-daughter relationship between the existing IIMs and the ones that would come up,’’ the sources said.

The Ministry has also highlighted the perception that all the IIMs are currently building their respective brand equity in isolation.

In response, Professor Bakul Dholakia, director of IIMA, has told the Ministry that he and his colleagues would ensure that there was greater synergy among the institutes, including more ‘‘give and take’’ of administrative ideas. The Ministry has appreciated the decision of the IIM directors to meet at a convenient location every three months. What the Ministry would also prefer is greater faculty interaction between the IIMs. At present, only the directors engage in any significant interaction—it’s only rarely that any of the professors are transferred or go to other IIMs as visiting faculty. The Ministry felt that frequent exchange of ideas will go a long way in building the brand image of the younger IIMs.

Significantly, Ministry officials conveyed these suggestions to the directors in as discreet a manner as possible so that none of them get the impression that the autonomy of their institutes are again being meddled with.