The AICTE has decided to allow permanent faculty members of the polytechnics to pursue MTech or a PhD programme in any of the technical discipline.
The qualified teachers can pursue any of the two programmes from this year at the National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research (NITTTR), Chandigarh.
Under the quality improvement programme (QIP) of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), faculty members of the degree level engineering institutions in the country were only eligible to pursue either a master's or doctoral degree programme.
The scheme was also available for the faculty members of the institutions offering courses in management, pharmacy, architecture and town planning, hotel management and catering technology.
"The council has now extended the QIP for polytechnic teachers. Only permanent faculty members of AICTE recognised polytechnic are eligible to apply under the scheme for pursuing ME/MTech and PhD degree programmes in all the disciplines," an AICTE official told DH.
The move is aimed at strengthening the "competency" of faculty members of polytechnics and "to expose" them to emerging areas of technical education with the government's increased focus on the implementation of skill development programmes to make country's youth employable in industry.
A faculty member of a polytechnic with 3-years experience in teaching as on April 25, 2018, is eligible for the two-year Master's programme in engineering and technology. For admission to PhD programmes, a polytechnic teacher must have a minimum teaching experience of 5-years as on April 25, 2018.
"Candidates to be selected for admission under the QIP will have to execute an undertaking to serve his/her parent institution," the official said.
The ME or MTech aspirants will have to teach in their parent institution for a minimum period of two years and those planning to pursue the PhD will have to teach for a minimum period of three years at their parent institution.
"Candidates will be admitted on merit basis only. The final admission of the candidate will be subject to the clearance and approval of the institution concerned. Institutions will have to relieve such teachers for pursuing the M Tech or PhD programmes. They will be admitted on deputation and their parent institutions will continue to pay their normal salary and allowances," the official added.