A new amendment introduced by the Centre that states that the President of India will be the Visitor to the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) with powers to audit their functioning, order probes and appoint as well as remove directors, has questioned the powers of autonomy of the high-tier business schools of India, as per PTI reports.
The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha last Friday, July 21, amid disruptions by opposition members over the Manipur violence.
The IIM officials are concerned that the new act that vouches to fix accountability might threaten the autonomy of these IIMs.
A director of a top IIM, on the condition of anonymity, said, "There can be other ways of fixing accountability. This will be a direct attack on autonomy. The concept of an independent board governing the functioning of a B-school is a global model which has been successful everywhere and it can work in India too."
Another IIM director said that this is a way for the government to exercise direct control and that they should not turn into "private fiefdoms". But Atul Kumar, a policy analyst with the Ministry of Skill Development, said that every official, directors and the Board of Governors are keenly watched.
But with the persistent resistance coming from the boards, it was later removed from the final bill.
Here's more on the bill
According to the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2023, the President of India shall be the Visitor of every institute.
The bill further stated that the President may appoint more than one person to review the work and progress of any institute, to hold enquiries into affairs and reports, as per the directions of the President. It added that, "The board may also recommend to the Visitor an enquiry as deemed proper against the institute which has not been functioning in accordance with provisions and objectives of the Act."
