The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) has decided to increase the fees for its M.Tech course by ten times to Rs 2 lakh per year on September 28. The move was approved to match the B.Tech courses fee. Currently, admission and tuition fees for an M.Tech course at IITs varies from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 per semester. The hike will be introduced in a phased manner over three years, starting from 2020.

The proposal was made at the IIT Council meeting on Friday chaired by Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’. 

The council is also planning to stop the monthly stipend of Rs 12,400 to M.Tech scholars in all the 23 IITs who join the system based on aptitude test (GATE) in engineering. In 2019, around 9,280 out of the 12,000 first-year M.Tech students were admitted based on their GATE results, said an official to the media.

The fee hike and removal of the stipend is also expected to lower the number of dropouts. The committee said the money earmarked for the stipend will be used for better teaching assistant-ships (for UG labs and courses). The committee also suggested that needy students should be supported through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) or educational loans.

The apex body also suggested the top one percentile of the student could be offered a five-year fellowship if they pursue a PhD from a top Indian institution. The HRD Minister launched a common IIT and IISc admission portal developed by IIT Bombay for international applicants interested in pursuing postgraduate studies.

The IIT Council also gave the nod to early exit option for B.Tech students. A senior HRD Ministry official said that students who are not able to secure the required score for the next semester may be allowed to an exit option with a degree programme after the second semester.

Also Read: IITs Plan To Reduce Dropouts: Weak Students May Exit With Three Year B.Sc Degree