The Indian Institutes of Information and Technology (IIIT) Bill, 2014, on Wednesday became the first education Bill passed by the Modi Government in the lok Sabha. This Bill would bring the four IIITs under the ambit of a single authority and help students get degrees.
Replying to members' comments on the autonomy of these institutes, HRD Minister Smriti Irani said,"The Governance structure of these institutes will be like that of the IITs and NITs which were based on the Central Universities Act as passed by the Parliament. So questioning the structure would be like questioning Parliament's wisdom".
The four institutes are IIIT-Allahabad, IIIT-Gwalior, IIIT Design and Manufacturing Jabalpur and IIIT Design and Manufacturing Kancheepuram. The Act will give these institutions independent status with uniform policy framework.
The declaration of the IIITs as institutions of national importance was being initiated with a view to providing manpower of global standards for the information technology industry, the Bill said.
On appointment of faculty, Irani said, "We have taken many steps to strengthen faculty of these institutes. It will be through systematic open advertisement."