ISM's popularity dwindles as numerous seats remain vacant

The popularity of the Indian School of Mines Dhanbad (ISM Dhanbad) among students has been dwindling, with numerous seats at the institute remaining vacant.

The admission process of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and ISM Dhanbad is conducted jointly by IIT - the joint counseling is held on the basis of ranks acquired by the candidates in the Joint Entrance Examination Advanced (JEE Advanced).

However, there have been less takers for ISM in the past few years. The total number of students gaining admission through joint counseling has been declining consistently, from 931 in 2012 it fell to 815 in 2013, which further came down to around 750 in 2014.

Unlike the IITs, ISM Dhanbad also includes the provision of spot admissions, which are conducted after the entire process concludes.

ISM issues notices in local newspapers, which mention the number of vacant seats, thereby inviting candidates who have cleared JEE Advanced but have been unable to gain a seat in any IIT.

However, even the policy of spot admissions has not prevented many seats remaining vacant every year.

In the year 2012, 121 students gained entry through spot admissions. Still, there were 23 vacant seats. Similarly, in 2013, although 169 admissions happened due to the spot system, eight seats remained vacant.

A point to note is that more students from the General category avail spot admission, compared to candidates from the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes/Other Backward Classes (SC/ST/OBCs) categories, indication that more vacancies exist under the General category.

Moreover, in ISM, all spot admissions are done in Bachelor of Technology (B Tech), Master of Technology (M Tech) or dual (B Tech and M Tech) degree courses. Not even one admission is for Bachelor of Science (B Sc) or Master of Science (M Sc) courses.

The Union budget 2015, presented by the Finance Minister Mr Arun Jaitley on Saturday, February 28, 2015, has proposed that ISM Dhanbad be upgraded into a full-fledged IIT during the 2015-16 fiscal year.

Once ISM Dhanbad is converted into an IIT, it will boost top-notch education as well as research in the fields of Geology and Mining in India.