Merit and Caste in Indian Engineering Ajantha Subramanian
In India today, the term “merit” is a ubiquitous term that generates a lot of political heat. Over the post-independence period, it has come to reference caste distinctions that have had a longer social life than others. The relationship between merit and caste is debated in a variety of arenas but none more vocally and consistently than in engineering education. Engineering education in India took off after independence as part of the state’s technologically oriented model of national development. Initially, engineering training was principally a state effort but, from the early 1990s, many private actors entered this lucrative field. Today, India has over 4,200 engineering colleges, with Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu leading the growth with 960 and 934 colleges, respectively. Within the world of Indian engineering education, there is a recognized hierarchy of institutions. Those considered most “meritocratic” are the Indian Institutes of Technology, or IITs—the focus of my research. Over the post-independence period, the IITs have become the most coveted institutions of higher education in India. The Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) to gain admission to the IITs is held every April and is a hotly anticipated event. Since the exam was first held in the early 1960s, the number of candidates has grown steadily with over 1.3 million students taking the exam in 2014 and under 3% gaining admission to the now nineteen IITs. Every year, exam “toppers” become instant celebrities, with their faces and “All India Ranks” splashed over newspapers and billboards. The success of the IITs has also spawned a massive coaching industry to train students for the JEE. With key outposts in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, coaching centers now admit students from as early as the seventh grade who spend up to five years mastering Harvard South Asia Institute 83