In a state where higher education is in a shambles and law and order is held hostage by anti-socials and criminals, LNMI has managed to consistently maintain high academic standards

Located in the heart of Patna, contiguous to the high court and a stone’s throw from the state secretariat, the Lalit Narayan Mishra Institute of Economic Development and Social Change (LNMI) is widely acknowledged as the premier management and computer education institute in Bihar (pop. 82 million). Initially promoted in 1973 as the Bihar Institute of Economic Development, it was renamed in honour of Lalit Narayan Mishra, the then Union railway minister, in 1975. 

In 1986, the reins of the institute were handed over to the Bihar state government. Since then despite bureaucratic mismanagement and government indifference, LNMI has emerged as Bihar’s showpiece institution of higher education. In a state where higher education is in a shambles and law and order is held hostage by anti-social goons and criminals, LNMI has managed to consistently maintain high standards in academics and teaching. Currently the institute offers MBA, MHRM (Master of human resource management) and MCA (Master of computer applications) programmes to over 500 students.

“LNMI is one of the best management institutes in the country. It offers modern infrastructure facilities and its business management syllabus is modelled on the IIMs. However because of the poor public image of Bihar, industry and B-school rating agencies don’t take LNMI seriously. But with the new Nitish Kumar-led state government promising to give education top priority, the future looks promising. The state government has recently allocated an adjoining two acre plot of land for building additional facilities and a sum of Rs.1 crore for operational expenditure,” says K.A.H. Subramanian, director of LNMI since July last year. A 1968 batch IAS officer, Subramanian retired as chief secretary of the Bihar government in May 2005.

An autonomous institute affiliated with Magadh University, Bodh Gaya, LNMI is accredited by the University Grants Commission, All India Council of Technical Education, New Delhi and the Union ministry of human resource development. The institute is administered by a board of management presided by the ex officio chief minister of Bihar. Other board members include a vice-chancellor of a neighbouring university; secretary of finance, director of higher education, secretary of higher education (all from the Bihar state government); representatives of UGC and the Union HRD ministry, and six eminent educationists/ administrators nominated by the state government and the director of the institute. The annual expenditure outlay of LNMI is Rs.2 crore, of which Rs.35 lakh is contributed by the state government and the remaining is collected by way of student fees.

LNMI provides state-of-the-art infrastructure facilities. Among them: four air-conditioned computer centres with broadband internet connectivity 24/7; an air-conditioned library with over 10,000 volumes; an online computer training facility; and an air-conditioned auditorium with a seating capacity of 300. Moreover to enable MCA students to learn hands-on, the IT lecture hall is fitted with a 50-inch plasma screen, laptops, and broadband internet connectivity.

Given its distinction as Bihar’s top-ranked business management education institute, it’s not surprising that companies make a beeline for LNMI graduates. Last year the institute recorded 100 percent placement. Over 50 companies including Berger Paints, Hindustan Lever, Johnson & Johnson, Cadbury India and ICICI Capital Services, participated in the campus recruitment exercise and hired graduates at average salaries of Rs.2.5 lakh per year. LNMI also undertakes research and publication work for reputed instit-utions such as the Ford Foundation, Unicef, IFAD, besides providing consultancy to state and Central government departments.

If LNMI has managed to build on its reputation as a centre of academic excellence, it’s because the institute enjoys full autonomy in respect of formulation of courseware, conduct of examinations, and declaration of results. “LNMI is fully autonomous and I’m happy to say that there is very little interference from the government in matters of academics and teaching. We boast a highly qualified faculty of eight regular and about 50 visiting members, and our programmes combine theory with practical exposure,” says Subramanian.

However he admits that LNMI students are deprived of proper industry exposure and interaction, given that very few companies operate out of Bihar. This lacuna was accentuated by the creation of Jharkhand, which was the hub of most corporates in undivided Bihar. “We try to keep track of every high-ranking corporate executive who visits Bihar and arrange for him to deliver a guest lecture to our students. Most of our graduates find work outside the state,” he says.

Arun Srivastav (Patna)