IIM Calcutta doubles stipend for PhD students

In order to churn out more lecturers and professors for the premier business schools and encourage research, the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, has doubled the stipend for its PhD programme in management.

The decision was taken at a Board of Governors meeting on December 23. The students will now get Rs 20,000 to Rs 24,000 per month along with a contingency grant of Rs 20,000 annually. Besides, they will also be provided a one-time grant for field study, laptop and opportunities to participate in international conferences.

"IIM-C has decided to double the stipend for its fellowship programme. We expect the step will encourage talented students with industry experience to opt for academics," said Bhaskar Chakraborty, Chairman, Fellow Programme and Research. After the stipend, which will be implemented from 2009, IIM-C will be offering the highest stipend among all the IIMs in the country.

As business schools are grappling with a shortage of skilled faculty, at present, the average annual intake in PhD programme in management is 10 to 15 students. Although there is no restriction on the intake, according to institute officials, the decision will increase the number of students opting for PhD.

The institute has also revised the rules of the fellowship programme. To provide more enriching academic experience to students, the institute will offer teaching assistantships, which will fetch them up to Rs 11,000 per month in addition to the monthly stipend.

Dinesh Varma, Chief Administrative Officer, IIM-Calcutta, said "We took this decision so that students can support their stay in the campus”.

Jamshedpur: Adityapur small industries facing block closures

Owners of around 600 of the 800 auto units in the Adityapur industrial area (AIA) supplying parts and spares to Tata Motors' plant here are a worried lot, having experienced two block closures from the auto major in November itself. Tata Motors, which turns out heavy commercial vehicles (HCVs) at its plant here, has in view of the current sluggish demand, decided to take a second block closure during the month, for five days between November 25 and 29. "Around 80% of us have shut down units and laid off workers," said Adityapur Small Industries Association (ASIA) President SN Thakur.

Taking the earlier shut down into consideration, the units would have effectively run for only 15 days during the month of November. Depending upon individual size and production capacities, the ancillary units together are estimated to take a hit in excess of Rs 500 crore during November as liabilities like payment of power bill, interest on bank loans/overdraft, payment to laid off workers including key personnel on half-pay basis, etc, cannot be avoided. Most affected are the small and big sheet metal and engineering units who work for suppliers of parts and spares to Tata Motors, and those supplying parts and spares like gears, axles, doors, etc, directly to the auto major. According to the ASIA president, most of the units have for some months now been already running at around one-third of their capacity, as Tata Motors has been turning out around 150-200 HCV chassis a day in recent months compared to around 600-650 units during this time last year. "We had already been victimised by low production and this block closures have come as a secondary hit," Tata Motors has already said that the slowdown in sales of its HCVs would call "for appropriate action from time to time to match the production with demand and avoid unnecessary build-up of inventories in the company or with its dealers".