Nagas by and large are perhaps ignorant when it comes to Technical Universities. It is primarily due to the non existence of an Engineering College in Nagaland even after it is established elsewhere in India for centuries and decades. Hence, it is very common for a Naga to confuse the elite Indian Institute of Technology - IITs (the only Institutes from India to feature in the top 100 Universities in the world) with ITI (Industrial Training Institute) and the NIT (National Institute of Technology -which comes next to IITs) with NIIT (National Institute of Information Technology). India is well known for its prowess in engineering and alumni from IITs and NITs are the exports from India that make people worldwide respect the quality of education in India.
Indian Universities can be roughly categorized into Institutes of National Importance (e.g. IITs, AIIMS, IIMs, NITs, JIPMER etc.), Central Universities, Deemed Universities and State Universities. There are two main governance models in Universities. 1. IIT Model (IM) which prevails in all IITs, IIMs, NITs and certain universities 2. University Model (UM) which is found in most state and central universities. In both models, there is a chief executive called Director in IM and Vice-chancellor in UM, who is supported by Deans, Head of Departments, Registrars etc. There is a board which is the principal executive body-the Board of Governors (BOG) in the IM and the Executive Council (EC) in UM.
Many of us know that Nagaland has a Central University (i.e. Nagaland University). However, many might not be aware that the Central government has opened NIT Nagaland (an Institute of National Importance -INI) in 2010. NITs formerly referred to as Regional Engineering Colleges (RECs) used to be governed jointly by central government and their respective state governments since its inception in different parts of India in between 1959 and 1965. A parliamentary legislation in 2002 upgraded the RECs into NITs brought them under the direct purview of the central government. In 2007, through another legislation, the Indian government declared these schools as Institutes of National Importance (INI). Today NITs offer degree courses at bachelors, masters and doctorate levels in various branches of engineering, science, technology and management.
NITs function autonomously, similar to IITs. This autonomy enables the NITs to set up their own curriculum, thereby making it easier to adapt to changing industry requirements. Perhaps IITs are most well known for securing jobs virtually by the penultimate semester of their respective courses. Likewise, placements in NITs have grown significantly and is close to 100% in most of the NITs. In 2010, the government announced setting up ten new NITs in the remaining states/union territories. This led to each state in India having its own NIT - like NIT Nagaland. The government assigned mentor institutes for each of the 10 new NITs and thus NIT Nagaland is under the mentorship of NIT Silchar. Presently NIT Nagaland campus is functioning in NIT Silchar with the first batch of 90 students. It is expected that the institute will start functioning in the old DC complex Chumukidema as temporary campus from July 2011. The permanent campus of NIT Nagaland will be set up in Dimapur district. NITs were founded to promote regional diversity and multi-cultural understanding in India. Therefore, in the NIT system, half of the student population in each batch is drawn from the respective state where the NIT is located, and the other half is drawn from the rest of India on a common merit list.
Admissions in NIT:
• Admission to NIT Bachelors degree program is based on an All India Engineering Entrance Examination (AIEEE). All NITs implement central reservation policy for all bachelor, post graduate and doctoral courses. That is, 27% to the Other Backward Classes, 15% to the Scheduled Castes and 7.5% to the Scheduled tribes. A fixed number of seats is reserved for NRI students and foreign nationals. AIEEE exam was taken by approximately one and a half million students in April, 2010 making it one of the largest entrance examinations in the world.
• Admission for Post Graduate courses are through GATE, NIMCET and CAT. The NITs maintain very high and strict eligibility criteria for the recruitment of faculty. Presently, the minimum criteria is Masters in Engineering from reputed Institutions for Engineering faculty and PhD for other departments.
NIT Nagaland permanent campus will be a modeled mini township in a proposed 500 acres land with all basic amenities of international standards. It will be a residential campus with state-of-art research facilities, excellent sports, computing and library facilities. The development of the campus will usher in large scale development and employment generation. With the establishment of world class laboratory facilities, professional engineering, consultancies and testing can all be done in Nagaland instead of outsourcing it to facilities outside the state. Presently, there is a plan in the pipeline where NIT Nagaland will implement the ambitious centrally sponsored scheme National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT) to provide Internet connectivity to all the Government schools and colleges in Nagaland.
Interestingly, for the first time in the history of Nagaland, there will be a large scale migration of students from all parts of India (including the major metropolitan cities) to study in Nagaland instead of the reverse way around. This will invariably boost the state revenue and put Nagaland in the national map as an education destination. However, at this juncture, like all other State governments assistance to NITs, the help of the Nagaland State government is vital to ensure that basic amenities are provided in the temporary campus at Chumukidema to enable the campus to be shifted from NIT Silchar to start off with. There is an acute need of awareness from students to the public, then cooperation from our public leaders are indispensable as we now have to compete with the NITs from the other states to create a brand value and strive to push the state of technical education in Nagaland from its present stage of infancy.
Nagas need to realize that NIT is a boon to Nagaland. Just like Assam came to be known for IIT Guwahati and Meghalaya for IIM Shillong, we can make people in India change their perception of Nagaland by proving that we can sustain a global brand of education in our land. I would like to encourage each and every Naga to spread awareness among the common mass to draw future aspirants and the bureaucrats, technocrats and policy makers to give priority to NIT Nagaland. Lastly I would like to call on our students from Nagaland to write the AIEEE exam scheduled on 1st May 2011 with zeal and enthusiasm. The only solution to catch up with mainland India and the world in technical education is to compete in the mainstream. NITs can provide the cutting edge to supplement a student’s potential to rise to the top.
Indian Universities can be roughly categorized into Institutes of National Importance (e.g. IITs, AIIMS, IIMs, NITs, JIPMER etc.), Central Universities, Deemed Universities and State Universities. There are two main governance models in Universities. 1. IIT Model (IM) which prevails in all IITs, IIMs, NITs and certain universities 2. University Model (UM) which is found in most state and central universities. In both models, there is a chief executive called Director in IM and Vice-chancellor in UM, who is supported by Deans, Head of Departments, Registrars etc. There is a board which is the principal executive body-the Board of Governors (BOG) in the IM and the Executive Council (EC) in UM.
Many of us know that Nagaland has a Central University (i.e. Nagaland University). However, many might not be aware that the Central government has opened NIT Nagaland (an Institute of National Importance -INI) in 2010. NITs formerly referred to as Regional Engineering Colleges (RECs) used to be governed jointly by central government and their respective state governments since its inception in different parts of India in between 1959 and 1965. A parliamentary legislation in 2002 upgraded the RECs into NITs brought them under the direct purview of the central government. In 2007, through another legislation, the Indian government declared these schools as Institutes of National Importance (INI). Today NITs offer degree courses at bachelors, masters and doctorate levels in various branches of engineering, science, technology and management.
NITs function autonomously, similar to IITs. This autonomy enables the NITs to set up their own curriculum, thereby making it easier to adapt to changing industry requirements. Perhaps IITs are most well known for securing jobs virtually by the penultimate semester of their respective courses. Likewise, placements in NITs have grown significantly and is close to 100% in most of the NITs. In 2010, the government announced setting up ten new NITs in the remaining states/union territories. This led to each state in India having its own NIT - like NIT Nagaland. The government assigned mentor institutes for each of the 10 new NITs and thus NIT Nagaland is under the mentorship of NIT Silchar. Presently NIT Nagaland campus is functioning in NIT Silchar with the first batch of 90 students. It is expected that the institute will start functioning in the old DC complex Chumukidema as temporary campus from July 2011. The permanent campus of NIT Nagaland will be set up in Dimapur district. NITs were founded to promote regional diversity and multi-cultural understanding in India. Therefore, in the NIT system, half of the student population in each batch is drawn from the respective state where the NIT is located, and the other half is drawn from the rest of India on a common merit list.
Admissions in NIT:
• Admission to NIT Bachelors degree program is based on an All India Engineering Entrance Examination (AIEEE). All NITs implement central reservation policy for all bachelor, post graduate and doctoral courses. That is, 27% to the Other Backward Classes, 15% to the Scheduled Castes and 7.5% to the Scheduled tribes. A fixed number of seats is reserved for NRI students and foreign nationals. AIEEE exam was taken by approximately one and a half million students in April, 2010 making it one of the largest entrance examinations in the world.
• Admission for Post Graduate courses are through GATE, NIMCET and CAT. The NITs maintain very high and strict eligibility criteria for the recruitment of faculty. Presently, the minimum criteria is Masters in Engineering from reputed Institutions for Engineering faculty and PhD for other departments.
NIT Nagaland permanent campus will be a modeled mini township in a proposed 500 acres land with all basic amenities of international standards. It will be a residential campus with state-of-art research facilities, excellent sports, computing and library facilities. The development of the campus will usher in large scale development and employment generation. With the establishment of world class laboratory facilities, professional engineering, consultancies and testing can all be done in Nagaland instead of outsourcing it to facilities outside the state. Presently, there is a plan in the pipeline where NIT Nagaland will implement the ambitious centrally sponsored scheme National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT) to provide Internet connectivity to all the Government schools and colleges in Nagaland.
Interestingly, for the first time in the history of Nagaland, there will be a large scale migration of students from all parts of India (including the major metropolitan cities) to study in Nagaland instead of the reverse way around. This will invariably boost the state revenue and put Nagaland in the national map as an education destination. However, at this juncture, like all other State governments assistance to NITs, the help of the Nagaland State government is vital to ensure that basic amenities are provided in the temporary campus at Chumukidema to enable the campus to be shifted from NIT Silchar to start off with. There is an acute need of awareness from students to the public, then cooperation from our public leaders are indispensable as we now have to compete with the NITs from the other states to create a brand value and strive to push the state of technical education in Nagaland from its present stage of infancy.
Nagas need to realize that NIT is a boon to Nagaland. Just like Assam came to be known for IIT Guwahati and Meghalaya for IIM Shillong, we can make people in India change their perception of Nagaland by proving that we can sustain a global brand of education in our land. I would like to encourage each and every Naga to spread awareness among the common mass to draw future aspirants and the bureaucrats, technocrats and policy makers to give priority to NIT Nagaland. Lastly I would like to call on our students from Nagaland to write the AIEEE exam scheduled on 1st May 2011 with zeal and enthusiasm. The only solution to catch up with mainland India and the world in technical education is to compete in the mainstream. NITs can provide the cutting edge to supplement a student’s potential to rise to the top.
N.Ngullie
Assistant Professor
(Civil Engineering) NIT Nagaland
nzan.iitg@gmail.com
