KOZHIKODE: The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIMK) has set a new benchmark by earmarking more than half (53.3 per cent) of the seats of its 22nd Post Graduate Programme (PGP) to underprivileged students as part of ‘affirmative action’.
Commenting on this, Debashis Chatterjee, IIMK Director, said, “Social deprivation is much more a central factor than economic deprivation.The IIMK wants to address these issues through its admission processes,” he said.
The IIMK has also set a new national-level record in gender and academic diversity by enrolling 59.25 per cent girl students in its 12th batch of Fellow Programme in Management (FPM).
In the PGP programme, the rate of women representation stands at 26 per cent. The inauguration of the 22nd batch of PGP and 12th batch of FPM was held on Monday. Sanjay Panigrahi, Pidilite Industries Ltd president, was the chief guest. Faculty members and IIMK students were present. The programme began with an invocation and lighting of the traditional lamp by Debashis Chatterjee.
In his inaugural address, Panigrahi spoke about the need for work-life balancing, in the ever-growing world of competition and Artificial Intelligence(AI). He also took the students through a session on Raja Yoga, which has immense potential in keeping the individual in good mood and health. FPM and PGP students’ representatives also addressed the gathering.
IIMK currently has 68 full-time faculty members and the new batch includes 27 students for the FPM programme and 426 students for the PGP programme. Out of the 1.62 lakh students who applied for the PGP, IIMK extended admission offers to one out of 122 candidates, keeping the penetration rate at 0.88 per cent which is tougher than the IITs.