Parliament gave its seal of approval to two amendment bills on the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) with the Rajya Sabha adopting the measure by voice vote today. The Lok Sabha had already passed the two bills -the Institutes of Technology bill 2011 and the National Institutes of Technology bill 2011.

Replying to the discussion on both the bills, the Human Resource Development Minister, Mr Kapil Sibal assured the House that the character of the Benaras Hindu University will not be changed by upgrading the status of its Engineering College to that of an IIT. He also assured that the integration of the BHU will not be disturbed.

Mr Sibal also called for innovative methods to bridge the gap between sanctioned strength and filling of the posts in the faculties. He said the budgetary allocation to the higher education has been the highest during the UPA government.