The truth is our politicians believe that excellence in education will eventually lead to problems for them. They have been countering this in a planned way. Now you have more IITs, IIMs, B-schools and engineering colleges (with additional seats) and so on with 50% Engineering/MCA seats going unfilled in India. 85% of the graduates, as per a study, are unemployable (that’s the word for unfit for a job). Andhra alone churns out 45,000 MBAs every year without having an IIM.
By denying what is due to faculty members of institutions like IITs, IIMs, IISc, ISI and so on they hope to eventually normalize and bring these institutions on par with other mediocre colleges (i.e., national standards). Taking away autonomy, increasing reservations should be understood in the context of vote bank politics.
By the way who owns most of the engineering colleges and b-schools that have come up over past two decades? It is politicians and their followers. How many people know that a large percentage of these institutions are owned by (country made) liquor barons (not Vijay Mallya variety)? It is a pity nobody understands their spirit to improve education in India. Well, part of these liquid assets and colored money, instead of going into already swollen Swiss accounts, is getting invested in Sibal-sed system of education - is it not something to cheer about? Look, we have already forgotten the foundation laid by Arjun Singh just a couple of years back in teaching IIMs what management is all about!
I understand that there is a Right To Education act which presses for free and compulsory education for all children between ages 6-14,the government would do better to focus on that rather than choose to tamper with higher education...
ReplyDeleteWe are fundamentally beset with very basic problems,high rate of illitracy being one among them.That needs to be addressed first,a bottom-up-approach is needed.
In some other forum, responding to a related discussion I said something like: It is one thing to have an Act and Laws and another thing to implement. Just because our parliamentarians have given the right to education to child, and duly endorsed by President, will every child get what is due to him? If it is so simple, why did parliament take 62 years do that? Are we saying that the absence of Act made the country not so literate? How did Kerala achieve 100% couple of decades back, without such Act?
ReplyDeleteI guess the answer is NO. We have any number of Acts on ragging, eve-teasing, terrorism, dowry, individual rights etc. and you name it and you have it. Nothing has ever deterred the wrong doers.
To make the country 100% literate the steps needed are different and transforming the best available in the country into world class is altogether different. Both need to go parallel lest the best available slips into mediocre.
Sibal’s reluctance to understand the need to recognize the academicians of premier institutions will eventually lead to the normalization mentioned in the main article. Those who chose to work in IIMs / IITs on the basis of patriotism alone will soon realize they neither have job satisfaction nor monetarily better off. This does not mean IITs & IIMs have no future; they simply lose their sheen. Those who have been associated with these premier organizations for the last four or five decades know what is already lost. They are becoming glorified colleges with very little research activity.