Even before asking whether an IIM-Singapore, IIM-Dubai or IIM-Frankfurt makes sense, the question to ask is one about autonomy. If the Indian Institutes of Management believe that a foreign campus benefits them, why should the government block it? It is good that on this question Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal is signaling a break from his predecessor Arjun Singh’s orthodoxy. Amongst the many facets of the license and permit raj in higher education Singh persisted with was his 2006 decision to veto IIM-Bangalore’s request to set up a Singapore campus. Sibal has been as energetic as his predecessor was vacilating, as constructive as his predecessor was politicking. His latest announcement that the Centre does not have any “in principle” objection if the IIMs want to set up campuses overseas is hopefully the first of many measures to inculcate autonomy in higher education.

Sibal’s announcement comes at the end of an ugly stand-off between the IIM/IIT faculty and the HRD ministry. No matter what the merits of the argument, the spectacle of those who nurture India’s brightest minds haggling for more money was a sorry sight. Sibal ended the stand-off with the IIMs, in part, after agreeing to radical changes. The foremost is increased autonomy for these institutes of excellence. Sibal said that the appointment of directors and board members will be by an independent collegium; the government will not have a role in these selections.

As it happens, the IIMs are right in arguing that foreign campuses will benefit the institutions. A world class brand, one whose alumni are counted amongst the best qualified, must be allowed to chart its growth path. From exchanges of students to those of faculty, these foreign outposts could revitalise the Indian core. There is also the demand-supply mismatch. Given how many students, in India and increasingly abroad, want the benefit of an IIM education, more campuses serve a larger social good. Whichever way one looks at it — institutional autonomy or common sense — Sibal’s decision to clear the way is a good one.