a) About IIEST Upgrade:
It seems that HRD Ministry is supporting the move for establishment of IIEST
The speech of Arjun Singh at PIB Press Release
Excerpts from the pres-release:
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Ministry of Human Resource Development
AN EDUCATED SKILLED, HEALTHY EMPOWERED PEOPLE ARE AN ASSET -ARJUN SINGH
TWO-DAY CONFERENCE OF STATE EDUCATION MINISTERS INAUGURATED
12:10 IST
Shri Arjun Singh, Human Resource Development Minister has said that an educated skilled, healthy empowered people are an asset and the challenge before us is to ensure that each and every citizen of India is an asset. Shri Singh was inaugurating the Conference of State Education Minister here today. Ministry of HRD has convened a two-day conference of State Education Ministers (April 10-11) in New Delhi. The conference will deliberate on issues concerning the entire gamut of education such as elementary, secondary, higher and technical education so that maximum possible progress can be achieved during the XIth Plan in the education sector in terms of access, equity, quality and efficiency.
5. Major Initiatives for 2007-08 and the XI th Plan
We have also decided, in principle, to provide assistance towards upgradation of 5 Engineering Colleges to the level of an IIT, and name them as Indian Institutes of Science and Engineering Technology, subject to the concurrence of the concerned State Governments to hand them over to Central Government for declaring them as Institutes of National Importance.
The following article commenting on HRD Ministry’s support for IIEST was published in The Telegraph dated April 11, 2007:
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070412/asp/calcutta/story_7635211.asp
(Links provided by Bengal Engineering College Alumni Webmaster)
b) The Supreme Court stays OBC quota:
Like IITs, IIMs and other centrally funded institutes/universities, this issue will also affect our college, being a part of central university.
This is captured in a series of news items in Times of India and other newspapers. The following are the excerpts from the news media:
- SC puts brakes on quota: New regime unlikely this year (30 Mar, 2007):
30 Mar, 2007 NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed UPA government’s decision to reserve 27% seats for OBCs in Central educational institutions, including top schools like IITs, IIMs and AIIMS, creating uncertainty whether the new quota can kick in during the 2007-2008 academic session.
The court justified throwing a spanner in the quota works by citing lack of authentic data on size of OBC population and extent of backwardness, as well as the Centre’s refusal to exclude the “creamy layer” (read rich and advanced among OBCs) from quotas. The court held that findings of the 1931 census — the last caste-based headcount — were antiquated and cannot be the basis for pegging quota size.
The bench comprising Justices Arijit Pasayat and L S Panta, which was hearing a clutch of petitions filed by anti-quota groups like Youth For Equality, scheduled the next hearing for the third week of August by when admissions to Central institutions for the next academic year would be over.
- Centre fights shy of a confrontation (1 Apr, 2007):
NEW DELHI: Two days after the SC paused Centre's bid to introduce reservations for OBCs in central educational institutions from the 2007-08 academic session, government was looking to douse quota passions with some nuanced talk while exploring legal remedies.
Despite pressure from southern allies like DMK and PMK, and the Left parties, government is unlikely to precipitate matters by looking to create a 'judiciary versus legislature' confrontation. Calls for a joint session of Parliament are unlikely to be heeded and government is likely to pursue its case by trying to convince the court to set aside the stay on quota.
Indications to this effect came from HRD minister Arjun Singh who told reporters on Saturday that the apex court stay on OBC quota was a legal matter which would be decided by experts.
- Reservation row: IIT, IIM admissions put on hold (April 9, 2007):
(New Delhi): IIM aspirants who were to find out on Thursday whether they made it to the premier business school or not will now have to wait.
The Union HRD Ministry sent out a letter to all centrally-aided institutes, including the IIMs and IITs, asking them to withhold declaration of entrance examination results till the Supreme Court decided whether or not to lift the stay on implementation of OBC quotas in this academic session.
The letter from the HRD Ministry states:
"You are advised not to issue any offers of admissions in institutes under your control for the ensuing academic session until you receive further communication in this regard from the central government."
(Chronicle adds: This will also affect admissions to our college.)
- Govt. approaches SC for vacation of stay on quota (16 Apr, 2007):
NEW DELHI: The Centre on Monday moved the Supreme Court seeking vacation of its stay on implementation of the 27 per cent reservation for the OBCs in elite educational institutions and setting up of a five-member Constitution Bench to hear the matter.
Filing a clarification application a fortnight after the apex court had stayed the provision in the central law enabling reservation for the OBCs, the government also opposed exclusion of creamy layer from the benefit of reservation.
The government maintained that the decision of the nine-judge Constitution Bench in the Indra Sawhney case (Mandal case) upholding reservation for OBCs is binding on all concerned, including the petitioners, the government as well as a two-member Bench of this honourable court.