V Ramgopal Rao, former director of IIT Delhi and Group Vice-Chancellor of BITS Pilani campuses, has suggested that IITs consider introducing five-year BTech programmes.

Rao said a longer and more flexible undergraduate structure could better accommodate differences in students’ academic preparedness, learning pace and classroom needs.

His comments came in the context of the recent controversy at IIT Bombay involving professor Suryanarayana Doolla and the death of second-year student Sahil Wakode.

Rao argued that IIT classrooms are highly diverse, with students entering institutions through a common competitive process but having different academic backgrounds and learning requirements. He attributed some of the challenges faced by students to what he described as a “one-size-fits-all” approach.

According to Rao, extending the BTech programme to five years could provide students with additional time to adapt to the academic environment and complete their coursework without compromising educational standards.

Rao served as director of IIT Delhi from 2016 to 2021 and has more than two decades of experience associated with IIT Bombay and IIT Delhi.

The proposal comes amid wider discussions about academic structures, student support and learning environments at premier engineering institutions.

A five-year BTech model would represent a change from the conventional four-year undergraduate engineering programme followed by most IITs. Any such change would require consideration by the individual institutes and relevant academic and regulatory bodies.