IIM's overseas plan scuttled!

"...HRD has said that they should open up branches within India rather than abroad..."

http://www.ndtv.com/template/template.asp?template=Education&slug=Govt+scuttles+IIM%27s+overseas+plans&id=18548&callid=0&category=National

Well, I have a mixed feeling about this news. On one hand, there is an elation that the Govt. is concerned about imparting management education to the domestic audience while on the other hand there is a tinge of sadness that the top-notch business schools of India are not being allowed to ply abroad and tap the demand for managerial skills development.

Being a part of a b-school, I would say that the existing institutions have still a long way to go to becoming truly global. The IIM's still havn't housed top-notch faculty of the Philip Kotler at Kellogs, Michael Porter at HBS stature.

The link below is an interesting read as to why Harvard attracts bundles and bundles of dollars:
http://www.forbes.com/free_forbes/2003/1013/072.html

Indian b-schools have been succesful in creating managers while those in the West are known for nurturing leaders. The kind of entrepreneurial funding that the students in the West get from their alumni is unparalleled. IIT's have been quite successful in tapping their alumni. This is the main reason why institutes in the West have been so successful. They get huge funds for research. Also if we compare the astronomical fees charged for an MBA program in likes of HBS, Stan and Wharton compared to the paltry fees charged in India, how can we expect things to progress?

I am sure things will take time to progress. Its been just about 40-45yrs of the IIM's having come into existence while HBS is almost a century old. So probably we can give the universities in India some more years to capitalise and build on their knowledge base.