Ajit Balakrishnan, founder of rediff.com and Chairman of Board of Governors of IIM Calcutta (IIM-C) was on his maiden visit to Ranchi last week. He praised the city’s ambience and premiere IIM established. Asked on how, IIM-R being mentored by IIM-C since its inception in 2010, he felt the former is performing better beyond expectations.
Balakrishnan was here to attend the fourth convocation of IIM-R as Chief Guest on May 2. He is also the member of Central Advisory Board of Education of Government of India. In an exclusive chat with The Pioneer, he shared his opinions about IIM-R. Excerpts:
Your feelings about RanchiIJ
I am in Jharkhand for the first time. It is a fantastic place. I bought two books about the region when I arrived here on Friday. After reading those books, I called my wife and said we will come here together in the next visit. There are many places to explore.
IIM-Calcutta is the mentor of IIM-Ranchi. Describe the relationshipIJ
IIM Ranchi is a kid for its mentor IIM Calcutta. But, in the last five years, the institution has made a standard recognition with good placement record, good faculty members and students. Frankly speaking, the kid’s performance is beyond our expectations. 148 PGDM students received diploma in one batch. The large strength is appreciable.
The premiere cradle is running with Director-in-Charge since long. When is the new permanent Director likely to be appointedIJ
Ministry of Human Resource Development is searching a proficient person for the Director’s post. It will take some more time. As per my observation, Professor Anindya Sen working as the Director-in-Charge of IIM-R for past few months, is doing well. He is basically Dean (Academics) in IIM Calcutta handling examinations but spends more time in Ranchi. This proves his dedication towards developing the kid IIM Ranchi. Even if the Ministry does not get a Director within the next six months, I am sure Anindya Sen will continue making developmental efforts for the cradle.
Your feelings about attending convocations in various IIMs.
I have seen students of agricultural background graduating from IIM. Infact, their parents seem more satisfied with the achievement. Three weeks back, the convocation of IIM Calcutta was held wherein I captured photographs of such students and their parents from my mobile.
The chain of internet is expanding in India. How can the new media be promotedIJ
The process of internet is facing several barriers like language, slow connection and high-cost computer. However, it is a good sign that Unicode is being used at standard level. This has opened doors for new avenues.
You launched rediff.com in 1995. How was your experienceIJ
I never started rediff.com for profit. Those days, the world of internet was completely different. Only dots and words were visible onscreen. We focused on the area and introduced the concept of mail, chat and news. People liked it. It is essential to work on the knowledge obtained keeping the choice of the society in mind.