From rxpgnews.com
HRD ministry seeks PM's advice on IIM admissions
By IANS,
Apr 25, 2007 - 2:32:03 PM
New Delhi, April 25 - Human Resource Development - Minister Arjun Singh is seeking the advice of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on whether they should allow the Indian Institutes of Management - to put out the first admission list before May 8.
The process has been held up due to a stay on the government's quota law reserving 27 percent of seats for other backward classes - in institutes of higher learning.
'After the chief justice of India listed the centre's petition seeking vacation of stay on the quota law for a hearing May 8, all top officials of the HRD ministry went for a closed door meeting,' said a source in the ministry.
'There were two major issues discussed in the meeting - what if the admission process is delayed beyond May 8 and should they allow IIMs to put out the first list,' he added.
The source said that finally all the top officials, including the minister, decided to seek the advice of the prime minister.
'The minister had already met the prime minister. In all likelihood, the ministry may give a positive answer to the IIMs by this evening,' he said.
The chief justice Tuesday accepted a petition by the government seeking vacation of the stay on the quota law.
After a two-judge bench rejected the government petition Monday, the HRD ministry had appealed to the chief justice to vacate the stay Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the authorities at IIM-Ahmedabad said they were hopeful of a 'quick decision'.
'There is a sense of confusion among the students, professors and overall in the campus. We have expressed our grievance to the authorities,' said a senior professor at the institute.
'If the admission process is delayed, then there will two major problems - either the course will have to be shortened or the staff-starved IIMs would have to work harder to fulfil the loss of time. In both cases, there will be loss of quality,' he added. 'We hope we will have a decision at the earliest.'
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