Mamata to Push PM for Besu Upgrade a STAFF REPORTER Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Will Urge Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to T
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Mamata to push PM for Besu upgrade A STAFF REPORTER Chief minister Mamata Banerjee will urge Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take the ordinance route to avoid further delay in the upgrade of Bengal Engineering and Science University (Besu) into an Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST). Education minister Bratya Basu said the chief minister has decided to write to the Prime Minister regarding this because she was upset by the delay in the change of Besu’s status. The minister made the announcement at the Shibpur university on the sidelines of a programme to inaugurate a web portal on the complete works of Saratchandra Chattopadhyay. Basu has already written to human resource development minister Kapil Sibal, urging him to do the needful so that Besu can function as an IIEST from next year. Besu’s vice-chancellor, Ajay Ray, had met Basu a few days ago and urged him to pursue the matter with the Centre. On Thursday, the minister assured the VC that the government was taking a keen interest in Besu’s upgrade. “The chief minister will write to the Prime Minister so that an ordinance is issued. I hope the vision to convert Besu into an IIEST will be realised soon,” Basu said. The VC said the relevant bill seeking to formalise the upgrade by amending the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Act could not be passed in Parliament last year because of repeated disruptions. The cabinet had cleared the proposal for converting Besu into an IIEST almost a year ago. The bill has to be passed in both houses of Parliament before Besu is granted IIEST status. The Shibpur institute was expected to start functioning as an IIEST from the 2011 academic year. Earlier this year, the state government published newspaper notices clarifying that Besu would admit students through the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination for the 2011-2012 academic session. After getting IIEST status, it would have to admit students through the All India Engineering Entrance Examination (AIEEE). This has given rise to some confusion among students as to the mode of entry to Besu from the next session, said a source. .