|
June/July 2007 News
Special Section
Other Departments practitioner's page President's page
|
||
How to Expand Student Places for MillionsIndia’s 10 million students still represent only 12 per cent of their generation India, with 28 states, six union territories and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, has the largest federal government in the world. It is a democracy by constitutional design and has a population of 1.1 billion. Unlike the “coming together federalism” in the United States and Canada, India’s is a “holding together federalism” where the federal government not only enjoys residual authority and considerable sovereign discretion over the states, but also has many obligations through mandated fiscal transfer payments to the states. The system of higher education in India is the largest in the world in terms of the number of institutions, but not in student enrolments, despite its massive population. In India there are some 18,000 institutions of post-secondary education: 17,625 public and private colleges, 217 state universities, 20 central universities, 102 “Deemed to be Universities” – mostly agricultural, veterinary and fisheries colleges, and special institutes – 10 private universities, five institutions established under the State Legislature Act, and 13 “Institutions of National Importance,” mostly medical, statistical and technological institutes. Slightly more than half of post-secondary students enrol in private institutions. Centralization, Then Decentralization Education debates during the initial two-and-a-half decades of planned development – from 1948 to 1975 – led to the realization that the limited role of the federal government (known as the Union, centre, or central government), coupled with the states' lack of resources and technical abilities, was widening inter-state disparities. Central intervention on the grounds of equity led to adoption of the 42nd Constitutional Amendment in 1976, which shifted education to the concurrent (joint function) list with the aim of building meaningful centre-state partnerships. Notwithstanding that education is now a joint function, the states continue to have the major responsibility of funding and administering 95 per cent of India’s institutions of higher learning. The centre provides very little assistance to the state-established institutions and that only in the form of general development grants through the University Grants Commission (UGC), a statutory body established by the central government in 1956 for promoting higher education and maintaining its standards. The total number of students enrolled grew from just under 5 million in 1990-91 to more than 10 million in 2004-05. Yet even after this expansion, in India the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) – the percentage of post-secondary age individuals who are students – remains quite low at only 12 per cent compared to the average for the world which is 27 per cent, developing countries at 13 per cent and industrialized nations at 58 per cent. The GER also varies widely across states, from less than five per cent in Jammu and Kashmir to more than 12 per cent in several provinces, mostly smaller ones (Himchal Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttaranchal). Although the share of female participation in higher education has increased to 42 per cent in 2005-2006 from 24 per cent in 1970-1971, wide variations exist across the states. And the participation rates of socially disadvantaged groups are still far lower than their share of the total population. States Fund 80 Per Cent of Budget
In fact, most state universities have had to resort to alternative methods of resource mobilization, mostly through private recoveries such as charging higher fees to students. Enforcing Standards In addition, two independent national agencies have been established for accreditation of institutions and programs: the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) and the National Board of Accreditation (NBA) – which led to problems of coordination and overlapping jurisdiction. Proliferation of foreign and private institutions of higher learning, coupled with the limitations of existing regulatory mechanisms, has not only contributed to the unbalanced growth of higher education, but has also adversely affected access, equity, and quality. This critical concern warrants establishment of a National Council for Higher Education that would revamp existing regulatory agencies and remove overlapping jurisdiction. India may be unique among the countries examined in this publication as the responsibility for higher education has continually changed between the central government and the states. While the centre was responsible for the maintenance of standards, the states were responsible for the establishment and running of institutions of general higher education. This was changed through a constitutional amendment in 1976 and the entire education system, including higher education, was placed under the joint responsibility of the central government and the states. Despite this, the role of the centre in higher education, especially with respect to financing, remained marginal, though several agencies were established to carry out the functions of co-ordination, maintenance of standards, and so on. Yet to meet the needs of higher education, the federal government needs to provide enhanced resources to both the central and the state universities. But funding alone will not guarantee quality. Therefore, because of chronic financial and other disparities among the 28 states, it is up to the central government to promote quality by coordinating quality-assurance activities with the necessary backup of finances. |
Sudeep Banerjee is the former Secretary of the Department of Secondary & Higher Education in the Government of India’s Ministry of Human Resource Development. Mr. Banerjee has held important national and state government posts. He is an award-winning author
|
|
| Reviewed March 30, 2007 by Rod Macdonnell | Return to Top | Privacy Policies |
