IISERs

I read with great interest and deep appreciation the recent guest editorial by Sathyamurthy. He argues forcefully that IISERs are jewels in the crown of higher education in India, a fact that all Indians can take pride in. IISERs owe their success in large part to the passion and vision of the five founding directors, to the granting of autonomy in the appointments of faculty members, and to substantial support from the Indian government. The students I have met from different IISERs confirm the wisdom and power of this approach. Of course, good things can always be made better, and the article by Avinash Khare raises some important concerns. It is so tempting for politicians to build new edifices rather than address improvements to the infrastructure of those institutions that already exist.