NEW DELHI: Amidst ruckus by the Opposition members, the Lok Sabha witnessed passing of a bill to declare the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing (IIITDM) at Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh as a centre of national importance.
The bill provides for the inclusion of IIITDM, Kurnool along with the other IITs, in the principal Act. This institute will be declared as an institute of national importance with the power to award degrees to the students.
Earlier, in February, the union cabinet had approved the legislation. When the measure takes effect, the IIITDM would become the fifth Institute with this tag.
HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar welcomed the suggestions made by the members of the Indian Institutes of Information Technology (Amendment) Bill, 2017 and said employability of IIITs was good but needed to be improved further.
“We have not produced Google or Facebook...so we must improve the skills...Every institute has to learn from each other,” he added.
Speaking on the Bill, Sougata Ray (TMC) demanded a national curriculum for Information Technology education so that there is standardisation in education and students are not taken for a ride.
Earlier during the day, Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge accused the government of adopting a fascist approach in preventing the House from debating issues, such as farm distress, mob lynching and the border standoff, among others.
Opposition members raised anti-government slogans in the Well of the House, even as proceedings continued amid the din. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who wanted to make a suo motu statement on missing Indians in Mosul, had to put it off till the House adjourned and re-assembled.
Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of choosing to “speak to captive audiences and public rallies, but missing every opportunity for a meaningful debate” on issues affecting the country, Kharge said media persons later that notices issued on farm distress and cow vigilantes indulging in lynching were not taken up, denying the right of members to raise issues of national concern.