The growth of higher education remains inhibited – The Shillong Times

By Lalit Sethi

Are there too many rules, procedures, and regulatory authorities that impede the growth of higher education through new universities, autonomous colleges, and institutions of excellence, besides the financial constraints? To create a new central university, Parliament must pbad a bill; perhaps a state badembly must do the same for one of its borders.

A Higher Education Commission of India Bill 2018 is in the public domain and a number of comments have been received, but the main ones have been taken for granted, neither rented nor doubt. The HECI bill confers the power to create or establish a university in the proposed commission through a set of "transparent criteria and thus eliminates the need for a law to this effect". But the Commission will replace the University Scholarship Commission, which, in its view, is limited in its overall academic goals because it has been reduced to funding for existing and proposed independent universities and colleges. .

an administrative apparatus, quite autonomous, for the release of funds will have to be established within the Ministry of Human Resources Development, especially for central universities. But would state governments be left behind and would they be invited to find their own resources for higher education, such as at the school level? Would it be a disaster?

Why this question arises? Because the last finance commission allocated to the states 42% of the divisible fund of the Union resources, estimated at 2% more than in the past to strengthen the process of the federal structure of the nation? Could this question be left to the new Finance Committee? It is obvious that it can not be so. Higher education is a matter too serious to be left out of central responsibilities.

The Department of Human Resources Development, by surprise, chose the Jio Institute of Reliance Foundation as a leading institution, even if it is only on paper. Is the department required by law to ensure that it has adequate infrastructure, an exceptional faculty, credible research results and a position of leadership? prestige in academia? A non-existent university receives the high-end selection unannounced. The HRD ministry has now clarified that the choice of eminence is conditional. Was it a warning shot after criticism of the Opposition and its rubbing of the eyes announced that she had only sent a letter of intent based on a proposal from the Reliance Foundation to something to establish in a certain period of time? Bravo! Better late than never or never? Unique in it's genre.

At the same time, a committee of experts recommended the provision of Rs. 1,000 crores to three special institutions and selected a number of public and private institutions for recognition as eminent, but the Jawaharlal Nehru University did not reach the shortlist.

There was a debate about the creation of new minorities or from elsewhere, "majority" institutions of excellence in the country. The proposed HECI may not have specifically taken a stand, but apparently the Niti Ayog, who worked on the bill, seems to be of the opinion that there has never been There has been a problem with various groups going from the front to make their valuable contribution to education at all levels and they have more than 100 years of leadership in giving a boost to the problem. advanced learning.

A specific issue has recently been raised that Delhi St. Stephen's College should be able to create more colleges by the same name in different states. But the College Students' Association rejected this decision on the grounds that if their nomenclature was freely used, even by the college authorities, they would be reduced to a private college and they would cease to be unique. The case seems to rest there. But Hindu College Delhi has come up with a move to set up 12 colleges with its name used in different cities. This question seems to have not progressed because time does not seem to have come to maturity.

But in Telengana, the state government seems to have expressed informally the view that there would be no obstacle to a dozen private or independent colleges. universities being created. Perhaps he would like to wait for the Higher Education Commission of India to intervene after an appropriate parliamentary and legal process and for the new institutions to be established in the new framework.

What is the opinion of other states? It would seem that they would like the HECI to be in place before the new structure takes shape. Each state appears to be concerned by a number of burning issues, including reduced planting of seeds by farmers, despite the floods in Mumbai and the Kashmir Valley, in addition to violence, crime and misuse of land. cyberspace. as the case of the lifting of the child, the molestation of women and the lynching of people.

(Lalit Sethi is a longtime journalist and commentator on political and social issues).