Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad will now apply the government-mandated reservation policy in its PhD admissions. This marks the first time the prestigious business school will include quotas for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and persons with disabilities in its doctoral programme, which began in 1971.
The announcement was made online, with a brief mention that "Govt of India guidelines for reservation are followed during admissions." Previously, the 62-year-old institute did not reserve seats for under-represented communities in its PhD programme, also known as the Fellow Programme in Management (FPM).
This development is seen as a significant milestone, especially after persistent advocacy by SC/ST activists and a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the Global IIM Alumni Network in Gujarat High Court in 2021. According to a TOI report, the PIL highlighted that while 10 other IIMs had already implemented the quota system for their doctoral programmes, IIM Ahmedabad had not. In response, IIM-A submitted an affidavit in October 2023, committing to introducing the reservation policy for the 2025 intake.
The movement was initiated by activists such as Anil Wagde, Suraj Yengde, and Arun Khobragade, who started their efforts in 2017 after meeting then-director Errol D'Souza. "At the time, they had no quantification of how many from these classes made it to IIM-A. You cannot control what you cannot measure. We thus filed a PIL, pointing out the violation of constitutional provisions, the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, and UGC norms," Wagde explained.
Wagde, an alumnus of IIM Calcutta, welcomed the announcement, calling it a significant victory. He emphasized, "We hope IIM-A keeps its word. We will monitor the process and will seek details of the admission once the process is complete."
However, IIM Ahmedabad has not yet provided specific details on the implementation of the quota system.
The announcement was made online, with a brief mention that "Govt of India guidelines for reservation are followed during admissions." Previously, the 62-year-old institute did not reserve seats for under-represented communities in its PhD programme, also known as the Fellow Programme in Management (FPM).
This development is seen as a significant milestone, especially after persistent advocacy by SC/ST activists and a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the Global IIM Alumni Network in Gujarat High Court in 2021. According to a TOI report, the PIL highlighted that while 10 other IIMs had already implemented the quota system for their doctoral programmes, IIM Ahmedabad had not. In response, IIM-A submitted an affidavit in October 2023, committing to introducing the reservation policy for the 2025 intake.
The movement was initiated by activists such as Anil Wagde, Suraj Yengde, and Arun Khobragade, who started their efforts in 2017 after meeting then-director Errol D'Souza. "At the time, they had no quantification of how many from these classes made it to IIM-A. You cannot control what you cannot measure. We thus filed a PIL, pointing out the violation of constitutional provisions, the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, and UGC norms," Wagde explained.
Wagde, an alumnus of IIM Calcutta, welcomed the announcement, calling it a significant victory. He emphasized, "We hope IIM-A keeps its word. We will monitor the process and will seek details of the admission once the process is complete."
However, IIM Ahmedabad has not yet provided specific details on the implementation of the quota system.
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