IIT Council’s idea of revamping the existing education system and proposal to scrap JEE Advanced exam will be discussed at IIT Council meeting that is scheduled to take place on August 21, 2018. Apart from the JEE advanced scrapping proposal, the idea related to discontinuing flagship B.Tech courses at IITs and converting the premier engineering institutes into high-end educational institutions that offer PG education will also be taken up. The idea/ proposal ‘Revamping Engineering Education and Returning Childhood to Students’ emerged from some of the eminent faculty members of IITs. The proposal aims to take IIT-level teaching to more students. According to sources, the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) liked the proposal and plans to take it up for discussion at the IIT Council meeting on August 21, 2018. Also Read: IITs Rise in QS World Rankings 2019 The proposal suggests that the JEE Main results of the candidates should be classified into 10 groups based on the marks range. For example, students in one range, i.e., 80% to 90% marks in JEE Mains will be treated as equal. Instead of conducting JEE Advanced, IITs and other top institutes in the country may enroll students from the top bucket with any further interviews or tests, recommended as per proposal. The proposal also indicated that IITs waive granting of B.Tech degrees and instead provide one semester IIT experience to eight times the number of students they offer education at present. The semester-long experience as explained will be provided to students pursuing semesters V to VIII. The admission to that semester will be based on the performance in the entrance exam conducted by NPTEL. Also Read: IITs to Launch Fine Arts Courses As per the proposal, students enrolled in the semester-long experience scheme may be charged around Rs. 2 lakh with bank loans without surety/ assets/ collateral. Special scholarships will be provided for reserved categories. Students who will spend a semester at Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) will get degrees issued by their universities that explicitly specify IIT semester experience. Students who undergo semester-long experience at IITs can take admission in M.Tech course after graduating B.Tech.

IIT Mandi (Indian Institute of Technology) has welcomed its first batch of students in the B.Tech course on August 08, 2018. As a part of the induction programme, students will spend the first five weeks of the academic session in an intense daily programme. During the induction programme, IIT Mandi does not conduct any regular classes for students enrolled in various branches of engineering. Students will be divided into batches of 20 and personal attention will be given to each student to hone their skills and help them get acquainted with the environment of the premier institute. Each batch of students will have a mentor to guide the students. Also Read: IIT Mandi Encourages and Helps Women to Become Entrepreneurs Branch-Wise Number of Students Enrolled in IIT Mandi B.Tech Course: This year, 196 students have joined B.Tech course at IIT Mandi and 38 among them are girls. The premier institute has been able to increase the number of girl students this year in different branches of B.Tech course. Last year, 22 female students joined IIT Mandi. Director of IIT Mandi, Professor Timothy A Gonsalves announced the launch of Data Science courses and revealed that the course will be offered from the first-year of B.Tech so that students will be equipped with the advanced skills to thrive in a rapidly changing world. Also Read: IIT Mandi Latest Placements Report Acting Dean of IIT Mandi, Dr. Rajendra Ray outlined the opportunities and facilities for extracurricular activities available to students on the campus. IIT Mandi offers a merit scholarship including complete tuition fee waiver and a monthly stipend of Rs. 1,000 to first-year B.Tech students irrespective of their parents’ family income. The merit scholarship scheme will for the next three years based on the academic performance of students.