Today, it's just the opposite: This year, only 16 per cent of IGNOU students had a rural background. And going by the response of others -- MBA and computer courses are the hottest -- IGNOU has become the way out for students in cities who for one reason or another bypass the established higher-education system.

So less than 2,000 students enrolled this year for a diploma in rural development programmes; only 62 went for the post-graduate degree in distance education. In sharp contrast, management and computer-based programmes together attracted one lakh students.

The most popular courses are the management programmes including a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) and the computer programmes including a Masters in Computer Application (MCA), Bachelors inComputer Application (BCA), Diploma in Computers for Office Management (DCO), and Certificate in Computing (CIC). Not surprisingly, more than 89.5 per cent of the students admitted to the management programmes in the various nodal centres of IGNOU have an urban background.

As if that weren't enough, only 37 per cent of the 430,830 students who have enrolled at the university actually correspond and attend the classes held at its 19 regional centres and 315 study centres. Many students take about eight to nine years to complete management courses at the university, though the minimum time has been set at two-and-half years.

While the MBA course is very popular with sales representatives working in small and medium private firms in the Capital -- according to IGNOU's own spokesperson, they find the entrance examination easier and the fee cheaper at IGNOU than at other universities. They usually use the MBA degree to get a job in a better organisation.

The BA course is a favourite with wives of south Delhibusinessmen. In most cases, says a staffer, the girls have married early and want to complete their graduation. Many even drop out midway as they lose interest, he adds. Students who did not make it to either the regular or correspondence courses at the the Delhi University also join IGNOU.

Often, they come from well-to-do families in the Capital, who are waiting to start work the moment they complete graduation, the spokesperson added.

Even Pro-Vice Chancellor Prof K N Tripathi admits that IGNOU has been unsuccessful in drawing many students from the rural belt -- the very purpose for which it was set up. ``The possible reason for the failure, '' he says ``could be lack of awareness amongst the rural folk about IGNOU and its programmes. The challenge before us is to inform people in rural areas that we exist. However, this does not undermine the fact that IGNOU has been a success with city-dwellers. Anyway, how many villagers really want an MBA degree?'' IGNOU is also being tapped for other reasons. Itsstudy material often ends up at the civil service aspirants' desk. Tripathi admits: ``The study material we publish is precise and many civil servants depend on them. Maybe they find it easier than going through thick books. We have generated a crore from material sold to non-IGNOU students.''