Class warfare

Witness what ensues when every unnecessary remark made by Jairam Ramesh is taken seriously — recently,he declared that the faculty at IITs and IIMs were not “world-class”,they produced no worthwhile research and that their reputation rested entirely on their students. Beating up on the IITs and IIMs is to tactlessly puncture Indian illusions without offering any constructive suggestions. In response,IIT/ IIM faculty have sensibly pointed out that research isn’t the only measure to judge faculty,that teaching,inputs to industry practitioners and policy interventions were also important criteria,and that “world-class” excellence comes when there’s a larger ecosystem of reward and incentive for research,which doesn’t exist in India yet.

But the political reactions to the statement have been competitively pointless. HRD Minister Kapil Sibal couldn’t resist saying Ramesh’s words perhaps reflected his own experience as a student at IIT Bombay. The BJP,seizing a chance to embarrass the Congress over a question of national pride,declared its heartfelt belief in the IITs and IIMs. Party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy added that we couldn’t have world-class institutes until we had world-class ministers. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari replied: “We do not appreciate the views of third-class persons on who should be first-class.” Meanwhile,Ashwani Kumar,sensing a threat to his turf,asserted: “I am the minister for science and technology… I am better equipped to say that our institutions have done us proud.”

Ramesh’s words have clearly hit where it hurts. But instead of ignoring them,or asking him to back them up with some concrete ideas for improvement,politicians have chosen to respond with these non-sequiturs. After all,Ramesh himself has done much to undermine scientific temper in this country — putting the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee’s opinion on par with civil society alarmists,playing his own whimsical politics with environmental clearances rather than basing them on clear,objective criteria. Pronouncements on the value of research and rigour,coming from Jairam Ramesh,are rich.