New Delhi, July 11 (News18): The Jio Institute, to be run by the Reliance Foundation, has been selected as one of the six “Institutions of Eminence” under the category of “new and proposed institutions” which satisfy certain criteria, the University Grants Commission (UGC) clarified on Monday. It was responding to widespread criticism that the institute to be set up by an Ambani Trust has been given the status even before coming into existence.

It has been included in the list under rules for greenfield institutions — new or proposed institutes that are yet to come into existence.

“It satisfies all the parameters laid out by the Human Resource Development Ministry, the UGC) said.

According to officials, 11 such institutions had applied for the IoE tag and Jio was selected from among them.

The Empowered Expert Committee constituted by the central government to assess applications had laid out four conditions for an institute to make the cut—availability of land for construction of the institution, putting in place a core team with very high qualification and wide experience, making available funding for setting up the institution and a strategic vision plan with clear annual milestones and action plan.

N Gopalaswami, who headed the panel to select the institutes, said, “We looked at the (Jio) proposal and it turned out to be fit for the tag. They have a plan in place, they have funding, a place for a campus and everything that was required under the said category.”

The other members of the Empowered committee were Prof. Tarun Khanna, Prof.Pritam Singh & Renu Khatore.

The government granted IoE status to IIT-Delhi, IIT-Bombay and the Bengaluru-based Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in the public sector.

In the private sector, Manipal Academy of Higher Education and BITS Pilani were selected apart from the Jio Institute. The two institutes were selected in the brownfield category.

While government institutes will be eligible for both greater autonomy and additional funding of up to Rs 1,000 crore, private institutes will not be eligible for any funding.

(The featured image at the top shows N.Gopalawami, head of the selection panel set up by the University Grants Commission. He was formerly India’s Election Commissioner)