Flooded with requests from candidates qualifying the NIFT entrance examination for change in the centres, the Textile Ministry has asked the prestigious apparel design and production training centre to change its admission policy.
"We have asked them (NIFT), if we can change the admission policy. We get a lot of requests.. Person in Chennai has to go to North-East. I would like it to do like IITs. The students should have options based on their marks," Textile Minister Dayanidhi Maran told PTI.
At present, even the top scorer in the NIFT entrance examination is not given the choice of a centre. One of the 12 centres is allocated to him in a take-it-leave-it manner.
In the existing system, "There is no choice even if you are on top. If you want Mumbai, they will give you Delhi," Maran said.
On the expansion plans for NIFT, Maran has written to all the Chief Ministers to send their requests for new centres, which would be opened on "first-come-first-serve" basis.
NIFT has 100-150 students in each of the 12 centres in New Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Rae Bareli, Bhopal, Kannur (Kerala), Patna and Shillong.
Maran, however, vouched for the transparency in the admission process.
"They have an independent board managing it. So far, there has been no controversy regarding admission", he said.
Though the minister has sought requests from all the states to open new NIFT centres, he would like the training college to be located near the textile hubs.
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Under the proposal, a state has to provide land for building along with Rs 58 crore, if it wants a NIFT centre.
The $63-billion textile industry employs 35 million people. It suffers from the skill shortages in the areas of designing and production.
Opening of new training colleges would not lead to a glut in the job market in the industry, Maran said.