5 min readJun 29, 2026 05:48 PM IST First published on: Jun 29, 2026 at 05:45 PM ISTWritten by Arijit BishnuA Bill has been drafted by the MoSPI, primarily to change the status of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) from a registered society to a “body corporate”, and to align it with the IIT/IIM model. A large number of current and former faculty members, employees and alumni of ISI, reputed academicians and civil society members have expressed their dissent. Many – from both within and outside the ISI – have also supported its adoption, like the chairman (R A Mashelkar) and a member (Adil Zainulbhai) of the 4th Review Committee of the ISI, in an article published in these pages (‘To recover lost ground, ISI must look to IITs, IIMs’, IE, June 18). This writer and many ISI faculty members have discussed the views presented by Mashelkar and Zainulbhai (hereafter, M&Z); the relevant points from these discussions have been presented.M&Z have stated that “… when AI and machine learning are remaking every industry, every government function, every research discipline,” the ISI “is watching from the sidelines”. This is not true. The ISI had established a Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in 2021, which has been conducting research and application projects funded by Google, DRDO, TCS, etc as well as national-level short-term courses and workshops. ISI has been contributing to capacity-building in this domain since it has introduced AI and ML topics in the syllabi of its core courses, M Stat and M Tech. M&Z have opined that ISI’s mandate should formally include AI and allied disciplines. For this, no new “Bill” is required; there is already a provision within the present ISI Act. In 1995, its scope to grant degrees and diplomas was expanded to include “computer science and such other subjects related to statistics”. Surely, AI/ML can be accommodated within this.M&Z have stated that “ISI admits around 550 to 600 students a year. IITs admit close to 2,500”.AdvertisementThey emphasise the demand for data-analysts but argue that “the institutional capacity to respond” is “missing”. The demand is real. ISI has tried to respond to it. It currently runs three undergraduate, eight postgraduate, six diploma/certificate courses in addition to a doctoral programme. Of these, nine were started in the last 15 years. In the last 20 years, the number of graduating students per year has increased almost four-fold.ISI’s mandate is “to develop statistical theory and methods, and their use in research and practical applications.” Increasing student intake reduces the time faculty members can devote to research. There is, therefore, no compulsion for ISI to compete with the IITs with respect to the number of students. During the past 10 years, ISI’s student intake has more than doubled, but there has not been a commensurate increase in faculty members. The government has actually imposed constraints on new employment.M&Z have opined that the governance architecture of IITs and IIMs provides “genuine room to grow”. They have stated that “both systems expanded dramatically in size, quality and global standing. ISI, still running on a society structure from the 1930s, did not.” ISI’s “society structure” is not an impediment. It is true that ISI has not grown as rapidly as the IITs and IIMs, but that is a conscious decision based on ISI’s objectives enshrined in the Memorandum of Association, and also because of government constraints on employment.AdvertisementFinally, M&Z have identified “the core problem” of ISI and have stated that the draft Bill addresses it: That the size of the ISI Council is “unwieldy” and that the recommended reduction is appropriate. This is being discussed within ISI, too, and if a reduction is decided, it can be implemented by a simple amendment of the ISI Act, without the transformation of ISI’s governance to a “body corporate”. M&Z have also stated that the centres of ISI established in four cities will “get real administrative and financial autonomy” which they believe is “long overdue”. ISI’s headquarters and its four centres have remained members of a “family”, amicably sharing resources, rights and responsibilities, including teaching. Why the issue of “real administrative and financial autonomy” has been suddenly raised is unclear.you may likeIt is important for MoSPI to hold regular discussions with various segments of ISI, so that the institute can grow rapidly. Transforming it to a “body corporate” is neither necessary nor desirable.The writer is professor of Computer Science, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata