The Besu campus at Shibpur, Howrah. A Telegraph picture

The investment required to upgrade Bengal Engineering and Science University (Besu) has prompted the Centre to a reconsider the process.

The human resource development (HRD) ministry is thinking about constituting an internal committee to look into the upgrade of Besu and the Cochin University of Science and Technology to Indian Institutes of Engineering, Science and Technology, said Alex Chacko, the undersecretary of the department, in Delhi.

“It was felt that the commitment of Rs 500 crore for upgrading the already existing institutes to the level of IITs is a bit steep,” said Chacko.

The note on the upgrade, which was supposed to have been passed by the cabinet and tabled in Parliament in the last budget session, has been referred back to the internal finance department of HRD ministry for reappraisal. There is no word from the officials on when it will be placed before the cabinet.

Asked when the internal committee will be formed, Chacko said: “We cannot give a date…. Representative from the institutes may be included in the committee besides officials from the ministry.”

The ministry’s decision comes out of the blue, since the Anandakrishnan Committee in its report had recommended an investment of around Rs 500 crore for each institute. Setting up new IITs would require larger investments than for upgrading existing institutes.

In a letter in December, the Union ministry had informed the chief secretary of the West Bengal government that Besu would be upgraded to an Indian Institute of Engineering, Science and Technology from the academic session 2008-09. However, an official in Delhi later said: “Besu should continue to function as a state university till such time when the ministry completes the procedures for update.”

“The Centre seems to be going back on its words. We are at a loss as to when the upgrade will happen. The academic atmosphere on the campus is affected because of this delay. A number of projects, proposals cannot be taken forward because of the uncertainty about our status,” said Prof N.R. Bandopadhyay, the president of the teachers’ union and the head of the materials and metallurgy department of Besu. He, however, added that the delay is merely a procedural thing.

The teachers are planning a “prolonged campaign” to push for the upgrade. They will “write to HRD minister Arjun Singh and all concerned officials”.

“We will keep visiting the ministry every fortnight to keep the pressure on,” said Manas Hira, the secretary of the teachers’ union.