IIIT Amendment Bill 2020 passed in Rajya Sabha: 5 IIITs to get Institute of National Importance tag

Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal introduced the Indian Institutes of Information Technology Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2020 in Rajya Sabha on September 22 and said that granting the remaining five IIITs Institute of National Importance status will help the institutions proser more. The bill was passed on March 20 in the Lower House or Lok Sabha.

The bill, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 4 and passed on March 20, right before the lockdown, will make the IIITs in Surat, Bhopal, Bhagalpur, Agartala, and Raichur Institutions of National Importance. These institutes are now registered as Societies under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. These institutes will now be covered under the IIIT (PPP) Act, 2017 like the other 15 IIITs established under the scheme in PPP mode. This does not give them the power to grant degrees or diplomas. But once they are declared Institutions of National Importance, these five institutes will be granted the power to grant degrees — Bachelor of Technology (BTech), Master of Technology (MTech), Ph.D degree. "I urge the members of the Rajya Sabha to pass this bill as it will enable the institutes to help our students improve the research scenario in the country and help us prosper," said Pokhriyal while addressing the Vice-Chairman of the house, Harivansh Narayan Singh.

The Cabinet had passed the bill in February. "IIITDM Kurnool has been established as per the IIIT Act, 2014 and is functioning with the other 4 IIITs namely IIIT Allahabad, IIITM Gwalior, IIITDM Jabalpur, IIITDM Kancheepuram. The post of Director and Registrar in these IIITs are already existing and the present proposal merely formalises them without any additional financial changes," said a statement.