Out of a total of 20 IIMs in the country, the posts of director in 14 IIMs are lying vacant.

The directors of the mentor IIMs are also looking after the work at seven new IIMs (IIM Amritsar, IIM Sirmaur, IIM Bodh Gaya, IIM Sambalpur, IIM Nagpur, IIM Visakhapatnam and IIM Jammu), till the appointment of regular directors.

For other IIMs, the tenure of the outgoing director has been extended or the senior most professor of the Institute has been given additional charge of the post of director, Minister of State (HRD) Mahendra Nath Pandey said in a written reply to a Lok Sabha question.

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For all the above IIMs except IIM Kozhikode and IIM Jammu, the Search cum Selection Committee has recommended a panel of names for the post of director, which are under consideration of the government. For IIM Kozhikode and IIM Jammu advertisement for the posts has been issued.

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Also, there is a proposal to upgrade / setup 20 world class teaching and research institutions, of which 10 shall be in public sector. These institutions are proposed to be named as Institutions of Eminence. As per the draft Guidelines, all public educational institutions including IIMs are eligible to apply for Institutions of Eminence. The selection process for Institutions of Eminence shall start only after the Guidelines and Regulations are notified.