The Human resource and Development ministry granted Institute of Eminence (IoE) status to three public and three private universities. The IoE status accredits the institutions to get full autonomy and special incentives to establish themselves as world class institutions. The Government bestowed the IoE status to IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi and IISC-Bangalore among the public universities. Jio Institute by Reliance Foundation, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) and BITS Pilani were the three private institutes which were granted the IoE status. Prakash Javedkar, the HRD Minister, also informed that the three public universities which got IoE status will receive government funding of Rs. 1,000 crore over the next five years to support them to accomplish world class ranking.

Congratulations to @iitbombay & IITDelhi. These are two premier institutes which will also receive government funding because public sector institutes which are granted status of Institutes of Eminence will get govt grant of Rs 1000 crore in next five years. #InstituteofEminence pic.twitter.com/n7NRnjR0Qh — Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) July 9, 2018

As soon as the names of the IoE institutes were declared, few journalists, digital pamphleteers and self-declared intellectuals started trolling and criticizing the Modi government. They were angry because of the inclusion of yet to be set up Jio institute. Few people lamented government’s decision to include Jio institute in the list of IoEs and others accused government of indulging in crony capitalism. Few people were spreading the fake news that the Modi government is giving Rs. 1,000 crore to Ambani’s Jio institute.

This preferential treatment to an Ambani University that does not yet exist is shocking. Particularly when several first-rate private universities have been bypassed. Are they being punished for the brilliance and independence of mind of their scholars? https://t.co/WQKmXcG2Jy — Ramachandra Guha (@Ram_Guha) July 10, 2018

Yet to be established Jio University finds place among the institutions of eminence in private university category. Is't it corruption? A corporate house is favoured again while some private universities with an excellent track record overlooked. #InstituteofEminence — S lrfan Habib (@irfhabib) July 10, 2018

You dont need campus, website, teachers, students, course material & a record of excellence to be recognized as “Institutions of Eminence”. All you need is to have the right politicians in your pocket!#JioInstitute pic.twitter.com/dvnQIcso6Z — CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) July 10, 2018

This was again a deliberate attempt to target the government and malign its image. The HRD minister has already made it very clear that only public institutes will receive the grant of Rs. 1,000 crore, and the private institutes like Jio will not get even a single rupee from the government. The government also clarified that Jio institute has been included in the list of IoE status because it came under Greenfield category. Greenfield projects are new projects that are yet to be setup. MAHE and BITS-Pilani were selected under Brownfield category and not the Greenfield category. So, the Jio cannot be compared to any other institute as it has been chosen under Greenfield category. HRD ministry further clarified that it had received 11 applications under the Greenfield projects but only Jio Institute had satisfied all the parameters. Those parameters were: 1) Availability of land for construction of the institution 2) Putting in place a core team with very high qualification and wide experience 3) Making available funding for setting up the institution 4) A strategic vision plan with clear annual milestones.

In response to some misinformation campaign in social media regarding "Institutes of Eminence", please find herewith clarifications on commonly raised questions #InstituteofEminence pic.twitter.com/K6IB5ILpfb — Ministry of HRD (@HRDMinistry) July 9, 2018

However, they will still be held accountable, and can be stripped off the title if they failed to satisfy certain criteria. HRD Secretary R Subramaniam said, “Right now they will not get the IoE tag, they will just get a letter of intent. If they are able to establish themselves in three years and meet the expectations of the expert committee, then they will get the IoE status. The expert panel will have the authority to withdraw the tag if the institution is not found to be performing up to the mark.”

So, again the vicious propaganda launched by liberals and leftists to malign the image of the Modi government has fallen flat. As usual, these people jumped the gun before even reading the facts pertaining to the award of IoE status to Jio institute and have now been thoroughly exposed.