Karnataka’s hopes of securing an Indian Institute of Technology on its soil has been in rough weather for some time now. The human resource development ministry, for its part, says it wants to set up another IIT in the South, and has asked both Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka to come up with names. But while AP has done so already, the ruling party politicians in Karnataka are still to come to finalise a location.
The search committee led by C.N.R. Rao has clearly nixed Bangalore as a potential venue given the space crunch in the City. It has said the IIT should be set up in Mysore. However, chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has said repeatedly that it should be set up in his father’s hometown, Hassan. In the to and fro, an IIT for the State very nearly seems to be set to slip away.
Questions: Should the IIT be set up in Mysore or Hassan? Is the Deve Gowda family playing politics with the move? Or does it not matter at all where the IIT comes up since few Kannadigas make it in the JEE?
churumuri 
Wait a minute…. Dharwad wants an IIT too. CNR Rao committee had identified GJ, RJ and KA as the potential states for setting up new IITs back in 1996. Bommai and SMK had submitted petitions to NDA govt in 2001 to consider setting up an IIT in Dharwad.
Selfish politics of the Gowda family meant we as a state lost an opportunity in 2006.
HRD has already allocated an IIT to Andhra!! Churumuri, you are way behind!! Do you think HRD will allocate another IIT to South? Unless there is another wave of IIT expansions.
Classes at IIT, Medak (AP) are likely to begin in 2009 in a temp building.
[ http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/18/stories/2007071850200100.htm ]
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Any new project which has investment in Karnataka can come up only in the Traingle of Ramnagaram-Holenarasipura-Hassan !
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“Or does it not matter at all where the IIT comes up since few Kannadigas make it in the JEE?”
This is a very sad indictment of the quality of education in Kannada siri naadu.
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Friends, when Mysore is already crowded with educational institutions, what is wrong in having an IIT in between Hassan and LKRNagara. Let us not forget that all individuals vanish and after that the instittions survive. If some politician does something we blame him to be partisan, if he doesn’t do it we call him selfish. How many Railways ministers were there from Karnataka and look at their track performance. It was during the period of Mr. Jaffer Sheriff that gauge conversion took place between Mysoe and Bangalore. When it comes to the question of getting a new project, opening an institute, first let us get it to Karnataka and then worry about other things.
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kila kilaa!! Most of you do not understand!!
IIT purported to come up in Hassan will be a BOOT (don’t think otherwise – it will be Build, Own, Operate, Transfer (if required)) basis project, which will have active participation from the sons and grandsons of soil.
Additionally, if you are not aware, it is reported that they will have a new branch in Engineering called the “BE – Engineering Politics with (night) Soil”. This degree will be patented by this Institute and will not be allowed in any of the other colleges around the world.
This college will be a deemed university where one can study all subjects – starting from Engineering to Management Courses specialising in “managing” communities, reservations, dirty politics, best practices for engaging relatives and friends in right places, “vishwasa droha” etc. to name a few. For really merited students, there is a special vocational programme on “How to become rich in shortest time”, “How to own vast tracts of land in Bangalore”, “How to become a Prime Minister of India without any credentials”.
Interested students may contact the college office (to be started) in one of the green fields at Hassan. Address will be initmated later on.
kila kilaaa!!
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I don’t see Karnataka getting an IIT anytime soon… unless there are huge changes in the political scenario in the Centre and State. The name of IIT is supposed to indicate quality and extremely-difficult-to-get-in. If the Centre starts opening IITs in every district and taluk, then the brand value gets diluted.
Rather, spend the money on funding quality engineering colleges across the country. Surely, the choice cannot be IIT or bust, and I’m sure competent and quality engineers are produced by several colleges across the country. Why not double than no. and benefit lakhs of students, rather than the few thousand who will be benefited by a single IIT (which costs hundreds of crores to set up and fund)
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I agree with SS. Dharwadakke IIT anta bo yindinda yoltaa bandavre..why suddenly names like mysore and aasana?If at all an IIT in karntaka, it has come up in dharwada only. Otherwise the kannadigas of that region will feel aggrieved and legitimately so. I agree with the author that it wont affect kannadigas that much coz there is maddening craze in karnataka as in other parts of india, coz we have had our share of good colleges for a long time.Even if there is only symbolic significance in an IIT for k’taka, we should make sure that materialisation of such a tokenism occurs at dharwada only. hale mysore elladukko modalu aagabaaradu
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Even though CRN recommended IIT to be setup in KA, it has lost out due to the utter negligence and passiveness of the govt. AP was very agressive that it should be setup in that state and put its foot down for setting up the institute at Medak district hardly 40km from Hyderabad.
On the other hand look at the callous approach of KA on the issue.
To say that Blore has been nixed due to space crunch is ridiculous and incorrect. There is ample scope of expansion in Bangalore Rural district.
Infact, Bangalore should be the natuaral and ideal location considering that it is the hub of many scientific, technological and R&D establishments since a long time.
Why not upgrade NIT Suratkal to IIT standards? what prevents the govt from recommending it?
When the govt wanted to upgrade engineering colleges to IITs, it was surprising that not one from KA figured in the list, though AP for example had more than one. Was it due to sheer negilgence on the part of our govt?
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@Alok, good point. Sadly we are still in “islands of excellence” mode. Screw 3.5 lakh students and fund a few thousand.
In the south, Cochin University of Science and Technology has been shortlisted to receive IIT status. HRD will have to maintain 20+ IITs around the country before we can expect to have an IIT in our state. Why not simply upgrade NITs (formerly RECs)?
New IITs will also be a burden on local govts. Free land, water, roads, electricity? Any contribution by IITs to local economy is highly debatable. IIT-less Bengaluru became a destination for IT industry but not Kanpur.
Brand IIT has a prestige or snob value for politicians. Nothing more.
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@SS, Alok, Kiran
AP has not only been allotted an IIT, it has been decided to upgrade two RECs into IITs. So in total 3 IITs. For good measure, Andhra has also got an IIM as well. To top it all of, it has also got four IIITs, a NIPER, and a school of acturial sciences.
Did someone say influence with the central government?
P.S. This is to all: why do communities like the Gujjus, Maharashtrians, Kannadigas, Goans seem to have low representation in almost the national level exams? This includes IIT, IIM, IAS, IPS, IIIT and any other national level exams including BSF, Army and Customs/Excise. I am told the Maharashtrian representation in IIT has improved a bit in the last 2-3 years. Who knows how true it is.
Any answers?
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The number of Kannada students getting selected to IIT need not be the deciding factor in demanding the establishment of the institute in our state. The choice of the location should not be a stumbling block, Hassan or Mysore makes no difference. We have nothing to lose with one more institute of par excellence in our state. There is no second opinion about the high quality of some of our own colleges but they will have to compete with one more rival of great reputation
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1. Vsesh avaru helidagae, KA nalli elli IIT bandru anukoola.
2. At the same time, yaake swamy ivarigae KA andrae bari Mysooru, Hassana , bengalooru astena.hangae ivrigae bengalooru horgae IIT irabeku adrae bengaloorugae athira irabeku anodadrae .tumkuru idhae athiradalli , Kolar idhae athiradalli alli maadli.. Appa makkaladu bari 3rd class rajakiya ..
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we already had a IIT in blore , Islamiah Institute of Technology on the b’ghatta road
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swamigaLe,
Karnataka was promised of one AIIMS and one IIT after independence. Till now we havent. And we actually need it. The fact that not many Kannadigas are making into IITs should not be the controlling factor. I am a student myself at an IIT and I know why not many Kannadigas are here. Basically most of the students at PU level are unaware of IITs and their education systems – which means, they just cannot aspire for an IIT. Look at our media also. Where are they making us aware of these things ?
But the situation in Andhra [ though they don’t yet have an IIT ] is entirely opposite. They have a coaching center in almost every street of major cities and there are coaching centres which train you to get into the other coaching centres which coach you for JEE !!
The point is that, we lack that whole culture of IIT and hence many students hardly dream about it. Bring an IIT to the state. Then things will definitely improve.
And regarding the politics about it, yes, we will NOT get it with the present set up of governments both here and at the centre. And we fighting inside the house will itself be a roadblock. Let it be some place in KoDagu. [ i am definitely not from koDagu]. It is cool, peaceful and has a healthy environment.
what say ?
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As long as we have potato farmers leading the state we can forget any forward movement with regards to education and health.
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waiting to hear….
Raitha sangha, Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, Janapara Vedike, Souharda vedike, Parisarasaktara okkoota, Elladakkoo virodhi NGO`s have condemned the IIT being built in fertile land of Hasan!
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not to mention Georgia Tech’s India campus. Almost all GaTech branches are top 5 in US. many even in the world. Apart from the Atlanta campus, GaTech is also building one more campus in interior Ga.
I know for a fact that during babu’s time there were a bunch of AP ministers and babus who were university hopping in the US.
So far I have not heard of any such proactive measures from KA. It is not about prestige, but about a change in university culture. Unlike European and Japanese univs, US univs are highly averse to risk taking & out of the box research, but they have a very protestant approach to education. They have far greater reach and impact than any other educational system in the world. bringing in these guys can only mean whipping the manipals, the jss’ and the sdms off their slumber.
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oh sorry forgot to mention, entire AP fought tooth and nail and almost split on account of where the IIT’s location. but irrespective of their internal fights they got it done. they got the IIT to AP.
KA must have an IIT at dharwad.
vaijnath patil and his gang can only take so much of this nonsense from the cauvery basin folks. they all got the short shrift during maratha rule. and unless bengLoor brings in some changes, those who fought for kannada unification will fight for its division.
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It would be great to have an IIT in KA. However having several top notch institutes in different regional centers even if they are not IITs will benefit the state more. This would help both in providing skilled resources for the job market and in improving the local education scene. This will also provide some balance. If we had just one IIT, irrespective of who gets it there might be a feeling among other areas within the state being left out. Having 4 KITs say one each in uttara KA, hale mysoor, west KA and central KA could be more helpful.
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@Sugata,
JEE stats from a recent year – “… 979 candidates from South Zone secured admission. Of them 769 were from AP, while TN accounted for 94 successful candidates, Karnataka, 84, and Kerala, for no more than 32 candidates…” See the difference coaching centers make? As Thejas pointed out.
Percentage of candidates from KA clearing UPSC exams has gone up steadily and it now amounts to about 5% of the total candidate pool – about the same as KA’s share in Indian population. There was no particular pressure on youngsters to join UPSC as there were ample openings in the private sector within the state. I suspect this is also the reason for low representation in UPSC by Gujjus, Maharashtrians and Goans.
There is a history of people from Kodagu serving in military. There are pockets in North Karnataka where people join military in large numbers also. Remember that most of southern KA was under Mysore Wodeyar rule while 4 districts in north-east KA were under Nizam. Bengaluru Cantonment was under direct British rule. Given the history of fights between Mysore and Brits, why would Brits bring non-Mysoreans to serve in BLR cantonment? ;-)
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I thought AP already grabbed an IIT. So, is this the next wave?
Doesn’t really matter…any place other than Bengalooru should be fine (the capital is way too crowded).
TS, your comments often are way too biased, nay? (don’t forget the ‘mother’ city so soon ;) )
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Best location for the IIT in Karnataka would be Bellary, Bider or Karvar.Let these Districts also develop.
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DS, enayya ninn raajkiya? :)
yashode nu taayi devaki nu taayi
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I agree with TS. It is high time NK (North Karnataka) gets a good institution like an IIT. But this project is not a vote catcher–hence the apathy shown by the local politicians from NK.
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This is on a different note. (Sorry for the diversion)
Have you noticed that people prefer to go to places where learning the local language is not really neccessary? Or learning about the local heritage/culture is not needed?Such places get the tag of being cosmopolitain: Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune. Chennai/Kochi where you have to learn the local language/heritage/culture are considered unfashionable/mofussil and derided.
What does it say about us as Indians if we consider the attractiveness of a city based on whether we do not have to learn the language there or not? That a city is actually decried for promoting its language? What does it say about us that our so-called cosmopolitain cities are in actual fact just ghettos of one community or the other coexisting uneasily. In fact, people prefer to live in areas where only their community lives, buy from their community, sell to their community, ridicule everything local, eat only their food and then top it all off by accusing the host community of being parochial.
IMHO, this all started with Bombay. It was there that this pernicious “cosmoplotian=no local culture” arguement was perfected. It was taken to such an extent that an attempt at getting schools to teach the local language was taken to the SC. Unfortunately, the Maharashtrians there had no leverage in the city for at least 40-50 years. The major centres of power, barring the government were not in their hands. Hence, it was easy to sideline them because (contrary to popular perception) Bombay was never in any sense “owned” or “controlled” by the Maharashtrians. They lost Bombay not in the 1970’s or 80’s but never lost it-because it wasn’t quite theirs.
Kannadigas are not in that bad a position. The power to change things is still there-but we must act quickly or Bangalore may become Bombay.
Delhi is a better example than Bombay-the Punjabis are a now small minority but are still powerful and very much in charge.
(Sorry for the diversion. I shall return now to the topic of IIT-Hassan)
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Sugata,
With the IIT being established in AP, am not too sure if the other two RECs (I was aware of REC Warrangal, is there one more?) would be upgraded into IITs. This would open a pandora’s box with other states crying hoarse. If AP does manage to bag all the three, it would be incredible.
If an REC could be upgraded in AP, why not in KA? That none of the engg colleges in KA figured for upgradation is not acceptable.
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Kiran:
Osmania University’s college of engineering is also being upgraded (I think). But for sure two IITs are being upgraded as well as an IIM.
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@Kiran, Sugata
I saw this link (http://dqindia.ciol.com/content/top_stories/2005/105052101.asp)
A few years ago NASSCOM/Dataquest conducted a survey of the top tech schools (engg colleges) and it was found that NIT Suratkal (REC) was ranked 11th overall and on specifric parmaeters was in the top 5. Surely that and other related data can be a strong case for it to be upgraded. There were 3 colleges from AP in the top 15 and I think two of these are getting upgraded (not sure if there is one more).
But even if that happens, there would be other regions in KA that would feel left out. We already see signs of that in the responses to this post. So it might be beteer to have 2 or 3 top notch institutes rather than one elite college.
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Faaltho …Anywhere in KA is ok why mix politics in this
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There is no REC in Hassan and Mandya!
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i heard one more IIM is coming up in south, probably in Chennai or Hyde?
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Kumarswamy does not care for development of the state..The man is good at only two things ..playing politics and making promises..An IIT in karnataka might have resulted in more kannadigas taking interest in the IIT JEE exam and we could have got more kannadigas in IITS..THe no. of ppl makin into IITS from our state has always been abysmal. Instead of vouching for an IIT in karnataka , he is doing it for hassan..already we have lost out on semi conductor fab to AP.hope we dont do in this case..
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Naveen, You forgot to mention the other 2 important things that Kumaraswamy is good at:
1. Production of Movies
2. Radhika.
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IIT should be placed at Belgaum. It will increase the presence of kannadigas there which is very critical for us to show our strength. So let’s support that. We should prevent Belgaum from joining Maharashtra at any cost.
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If IIT is not set up in Dharwad then Karnataka state will split. There will be new state North Karnataka or whatever. This will end 50 years of discrimination and will teach politicians of South Karnataka a good lesson.
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It iwll never be at Dharwad and it will never split Karnataka Dharwad have got IIIT Bangalore campus , I am sure it is going to Belgaum this time , I heard lot of other people form near by states supporting it. there can never be state called North karnataka ,Yo Dharwadis I heard Dharwad has mental hospital, ar u all comming form there, dont talk of spliting state there cane be only one Karnataka and Bangalore as it is capital, no second capital , but I stand by kanndigas so IIT should be based in Belgaum it already have VTU with lot of reserch affilited to it, IIT would further benifit the place and region.
Vokkuttaa Karntaka kannada abhimani
Jai Krntaka Jai Hind
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IIT can only be at Belgaum no wahre else , we have sufferd enough
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Sari Helidri Patilre Belagavi nalli IIT sthapisle beku , hinde Mahim Patel avru Belgavakke Amercian internation univarsity tartaa iddru , yar gottilya addkee kaddi hakidru , hogli eega matra IIT belgavakkee
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