PM Modi at IIT Convocation: Women Still Under-Represented

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at a recent Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) convocation ceremony, voiced a heartfelt concern about the low number of women among the graduating medallists. His remarks have reignited a national conversation about gender inclusion at India's most prestigious engineering institutions.

PM's Remarks Highlight a Systemic Gap

Addressing the graduating batch, PM Modi said he wished there were more daughters among those receiving medals — a statement that resonated widely given the historically skewed male-to-female ratio at IITs. While the Prime Minister celebrated the achievements of all graduates, his observation underscored an imbalance that educators, policymakers, and students have long acknowledged but struggled to address effectively.

Where Do Women Stand in IITs Today?

Despite sustained policy-level efforts over the past decade, women continue to account for a small share of the overall IIT student population. The gender gap is visible at multiple levels:

• Women constitute roughly 20% or fewer of total undergraduate seats across most IITs, a figure that has improved slowly over the years.
• Medal and rank lists at convocations, while not exclusively male, still skew heavily towards male graduates in absolute numbers simply due to enrolment ratios.
• Fields such as Computer Science and Electrical Engineering — among the most sought-after — see particularly low female enrolment compared to branches like Architecture or Chemistry.

Supernumerary Seats: A Step Forward

To address the imbalance, the IIT Council introduced supernumerary seats for female candidates under the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Advanced system. This policy, rolled out in phases, aims to ensure that women make up at least 20% of each IIT batch. However, experts point out that filling seats is only the beginning — retention, mentorship, and a supportive campus environment are equally critical.

Why the Gap Persists

Analysts and educators cite several interconnected reasons for the continued under-representation of women at IITs and other Institutes of National Importance:

• Early discouragement: Girls are often steered away from Mathematics and Science streams at the school level, reducing the pool of female JEE aspirants.
• Coaching ecosystem: The intensive JEE preparation culture, centred in cities like Kota, has historically been male-dominated in terms of enrolment.
• Social and family pressure: In many parts of India, families remain reluctant to send daughters far from home for a four-year residential programme.
• Stereotype threat: Perceptions about who belongs in engineering continue to influence girls' own aspirations and confidence.

What Institutes of National Importance Are Doing

Beyond supernumerary seats, several IITs have launched dedicated initiatives — gender-sensitisation programmes, women-in-STEM cells, and outreach campaigns targeting girl students in Class 9 to 12. NITs and other centrally funded technical institutions have similarly been encouraged by the Ministry of Education to adopt gender-inclusive admission strategies.

PM Modi's public statement at the convocation is being seen as a signal that the highest levels of government want faster, measurable progress on this front — not merely symbolic gestures.

The Road Ahead

For meaningful change, education experts suggest a multi-pronged approach: early STEM exposure for girls, reform of the JEE coaching culture, stronger institutional support systems on campus, and, crucially, more female faculty members who can serve as role models. Until these structural shifts happen, convocation podiums at IITs are likely to remain dominated by male faces — a reality that even the Prime Minister has now publicly called out.

For the latest updates on IIT admissions, JEE Advanced results, and gender-inclusion policies at central universities, visit CollegeUnify.