Saturday, July 25, 2009

Shri Kapil Sibal calls on State Governments to prepare their vision for higher education for 2020

MEETING OF STATE HIGHER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION SECRETARIES BEING HELD TODAY 

All state governments must prepare a vision document for higher education. This document must contain the state’s vision for higher education till 2020, including the current state of affairs, such as the number of universities and colleges, and how the state perceives the quality of these institutes as well as the states’ budgetary outlay in this sector. This paper must then propose how the state plans to increase its Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER). This was the appeal made to the Principal Secretaries, Secretaries of Higher and Technical Education of State Government by the Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Shri Kapil Sibal, while addressing them in a meeting today. Smt. D. Purandeswari, Minister of State for HRD and Shri R.P. Agrawal, Secretary, Department of Higher Education, among other senior officials of the HRD Ministry were present at the meeting. 

Shri Sibal added that this document must also show how the states are proposing to improve the quality of Vice Chancellors etc. He stated once the centre has this vision from the states, can there be collaboration between the two and for the centre also, it would be more possible to help those states which have a prepared vision document. Shri Kapil Sibal underlined that the centre was looking at only a collaborated relationship with the states rather than one of control. 

Shri Sibal exhorted the states to increase their budgetary allocations for higher education, which, are showing a disturbing downward trend. While the Centre’s contribution in education, as a percentage of GDP has been steadily increasing to 0.91 percent from 0.53 percent in 2000-01(a huge increase in real terms with the country’s impressive GDP growth rates), the allocation of the States has shown a decline from 3.76 percent to 2.73percent in the corresponding period. 

The Union HRD Minister pointed out to the states that they should also have an accreditation system for their colleges. This accrediting agency would benchmark the institutes in the respective states, informing students about the quality and resources of the institute they are going to attend. He added that this would help create competition among institutions leading to their improvement. He also urged the state governments to hire faculty to fill in vacancies, saying that if there is a ban on recruitment, how can quality be improved? 

Shri Kapil Sibal said that the centre is thinking in terms of allowing the setting up of autonomous colleges. These colleges would require higher level of parameters to be independent of universities and once they improve even further, they may be allowed to become universities themselves. Thus, there would be a three tier system in college education, i.e. affiliated colleges, autonomous colleges and universities. He said that this would allow colleges to improve themselves. 

Shri Sibal underlined that quality has to be along with equity, without which India cannot move forward. Towards this end, 374 model colleges for bringing in equity with quality are to be set up in 374 educationally backward districts in the country. He pointed out that through the Right to Education Bill which has already been passed by the Rajya Sabha, India is going to be spending huge amounts for neighborhood schools, the process by which adequate number of students will be thrown up for the university system. He also said that if India is to use its demographic advantage to provide the declining populations of the developed world with trained manpower, the emphasis must be on quality. 

The minister informed the gathering that the ‘National Mission on Education through ICT’ has been launched, and in the current year’s budget it is proposed to spend Rs.900 crore on this mission. The mission has two critical components - (a) creation of very high quality e-content and (b) providing connectivity and related infrastructure to each of the 20000 + colleges and to each of the university departments, without any distinction of them being in the private sector. 

Speaking on the occasion, Shri R.P. Agrawal, Secretary, and Department of Higher Education said that the envisaged 5% increase in the GER by the end of the 11th Plan and raising it to the world average of 30% by 2020 can be achieved only if states come forward. Shri Agrawal also sought inputs of the participating officers on the Yashpal Committee Report, the proposed law to prohibit/punish educational mal practices, setting up of educational tribunals and the setting up of a regulatory authority for accreditation and making it mandatory.

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