IITs to offer more exclusive seats for women candidates this year

More girl students would get admission in the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) from the 2018 academic session as the admission board today approved a quota of "supernumerary" seats for women.

Concerned over the fall in the number of girl students getting admission to the IITs, the Joint Admission Board (JAB) had set up a panel last year, under the chairmanship of professor Timothy Gonsalves to find ways to improve the situation in the institutes, an HRD ministry official said.

The panel had earlier this year suggested creating up to 20 percent supernumerary seats for girls out of the total number of seats in the IITs.

The recommendations were taken up during a meeting of the JAB today which approved the quota, the official said.

"The percentage of the supernumerary seats will be decided every year. The increase will not affect the existing number of seats for men and the changes would be implemented over a maximum of eight years. Also, the seats vacated by woman students will be filled by a woman candidates only," a senior HRD Ministry official said.