Gender Ratio in IITs reaches 20%: Several initiatives to Improve Female Enrolment at Top Technical Institutes

The Government aimed to boost female students in B.Tech. programmes, progressively increasing it from 8% to 14% in 2018-19, then to 17% in 2019-20, and ultimately reaching 20% in 2020-21 by introducing supernumerary quota exclusively for women.

Over the years, the IITs have witnessed a distressing gender imbalance. Despite constant efforts to improve the gender ratio on campuses, there was a still a long way to go. Before the implementation of the supernumerary quota for women in 2018, the IITs enrolled 995 women and 9,883 men. For the academic session of 2022-23, a total of 3,310 women, constituting 20% of the total seats available were given admissions across the 23 IITs.

In the question and answer session in parliament in Lok Sabha, a question has been raised regarding gender ratio in IITs, whether is it true that the national average stands at just 19%, while IIT Delhi aims for a balanced 50:50 gender ratio?

In the Lok Sabha, Dr. Subhas Sarkar, the Union Minister of State for Education, addressed this question by answering that to boost female enrolment in the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), the Government made efforts to increase female representation in the B.Tech. programmes from 8% to 14% in 2018-19, 17% in 2019-20, and finally to 20% in 2020-21 through the creation of supernumerary seats. Consequently, female enrollment in IITs for B.Tech. programmes reached 15.3% in 2018-19, 18% in 2019-20, and 19.8% in 2020-21.

He also stated, "As per Joint Entrance Examination (Advanced) 2023- Joint Implementation Committee (JIC) Report, 26.26% seats allocated to the female candidates in IIT Hyderabad Zone (IIT Madras, IIT Hyderabad, IIT Tirupati, IIT Palakkad), while 19.73% seats were allocated to the female candidates across the 23 IITs."

Apart from these initiatives, several institutions have implemented measures to enhance the gender balance. These actions encompass specialized scholarships for female students, dedicated open house outreach programs targeting high school girls to promote their interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), counseling sessions tailored for JEE (Advanced) qualified female students, and more.

Read More

• 14,000 OBC, SC/ST Students Drop Out of Central Universities, IITs, and IIMs in 5 Years
• IITs, IIMs Advised to Adopt Multi-Faceted Education Approach: Union Education Minister