Four reasons why Jio Institute was selected for ‘Institute of Eminence’ status

Mumbai: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has picked three public sector and three private sector institutions and given them the status of Institute of Eminence (IoE) tag.

The list includes – IIT Mumbai, IIT Delhi and IISc Bangalore from the public sector and Jio Institute, BITS Pilani and Manipal University from the private sector.

The mandate was to find 20 IoEs, which will be developed as world-class institutions with financial support (only for public sector institutes) and autonomy from government. In turn, the expectation is that these institutions would break into the top 500 in the world in a decade.

The public sector institutions on the list will get a funding of Rs 1,000 crore over the next five years.

“The Institutes of Eminence are important for the country…,” HRD minister Prakash Javadekar said on Twitter.

The #InstituteofEminence are important for the country. We have 800 univ, but not a single university in top 100 or even 200 in the world ranking. Today's decision will help achieve this. #InstituteofEminence #TransformingEducation #48MonthsOfTransformingIndia @PIB_India

— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) July 9, 2018

The government invited applications from public and private entities for IoE under the greenfield and brownfield category. The government constituted an Empowered Expert Committee comprising N Gopalaswami (Chairman), Prof. Tarun Khanna, Prof. Pritam Singh and Renu Khatore to assess applications.

In the Government category, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, and IISc Bangalore were selected for IoE status. These institutes will be eligible for greater autonomy and funds to compete in the international space.

In the private category, BITS Pilani and Manipal University education were selected for IoE status in the brownfield category. Jio Institute was selected for the IoE status in the greenfield category. Private institutes will receive greater autonomy but will not be eligible for any funding.

The EEC took the following parameters into account for judging the applications received for setting up greenfield institutions:-

a) Availability of land for construction of the institution b) Putting in place a core team with very high qualification and wide experience c) Making available funding for setting up the institution d) A strategic vision plan with clear annual milestones and action plan

In all, 11 applications were received for IoE status under the greenfield category. Out of the 11 applications, only Jio Institute satisfied all the four parameters stated above.

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