There is significant pressure on the higher education system in India given that the government wants to increase the number of people who enroll in the higher education system from the current 10% of the population to 15% by the end of the XI Plan. Even though Indian institutions contribute 3,50,000 engineers and 2.5 million varsity graduates annually to the workforce, about 5 million graduates remain unemployed, according to a recent Ficci report on ?Industry-Academia convergence?. The crunch is also felt in the number of doctorates that India produces. The report mentions that, ?India needs well over 10,000 PhDs and twice as many MTech degree holders for meeting its huge research and development needs, but India produces barely 400 engineering PhDs a year.?
Although the government has been increasing investment in education, ?the effort has been inadequate to address the direct needs of the corporate sector?, the report mentions. According to a government estimate, $774 million is required to upgrade existing universities including filling vacancies of faculty. So, what is the solution?should then the government get out of higher education and concentrate on skills? education? Says Dr Ramdas M Pai, president, Manipal University, ?I feel the government must stay away from involving itself in the promotion of higher education and rather concentrate on the strengthening of the primary and secondary education sector. The private-sector institutions will have to be self-supporting ones and the public is sure to support such institutions which are capable of maintaining standards of academic excellence.?
Manipal University like Amity University does not get grants from the government or any other agencies and depends fully on tuition fees. Says Atul Chauhan, chancellor, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, ?It is clear that the government has to stay (due to inequities). However, the government should promote private players in higher education, as the demand is very high. Regulating organisations such as the AICTE should be encouraged to develop quality rather than promote inspector raj. Self-regulation by private varsities should be encouraged.?
He stresses that regulation should be done at the point of entry or while setting up a private institution of higher learning as ?anyone? can set up an institution. He says, ?Currently, 14,000 institutions come under the AICTE umbrella. Each institution must be giving them 10 kg worth of paper on all criteria they are expected to meet in writing. How can the AICTE check everything? It is physically impossible. Freedom should be given to private institutions to regulate.?
The recommendation in the eighth Plan (1992-97), that the opening of ?new conventional universities and colleges should not be encouraged?, led to a change in government policy and increased private participation in higher education. A Ficci report on ?Understanding of Private Higher Education in India?, says that, ?After 2000, when the provision for conferring the deemed-to-be-university status to a de novo institution was introduced, there was a sudden spurt in the growth of deemed-to-be universities in the private sector.?
Currently, of the 48 institutions that were made deemed-to-be varsities between 2000 and 2005, 26 are privately sponsored. Apart from this, there are seven private varsities in the country. Meanwhile, according to the Ficci report, private institutions tend to prefer professional courses, and that affects equity in education, as admission is conducted on the ability to pay. However, says Dr Sujit K Basu, director, Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, ?Currently only 10% of the relevant population has access to higher education, this figure should be at least 20%. Therefore, down the line, I envisage a bigger role for private higher education institutions in India, like in the US. That will be the future of India, I am more or less convinced. Private sector will have the money to invest in infrastructure. If the institutions are left to market forces, that will act as a regulatory mechanism.?
He stresses that skills have to honed for employability and the government should focus on skill-building as 400 million people in the country are in the age-group of 10-15 years, mostly in rural areas. Says Dr Dinesh Harsolekar, director, IES Management College, Mumbai, one of the top 10 management colleges in that city, ?The scenario today is such that there are different set of regulations for private and government institutions in the country. Private players do exist in higher education. However, tight rules and regulations govern them. There is no way private institutions can compete with allied institutions at the national level, given the number of restrictions on them today. Control at every level, be it admission or fee structure exists. This is for all university courses conducted by private players.?
According to industry estimates, manufacturing will create 25 million jobs in the next decade and the IT industry is expected to need 5 million skilled workers. Therefore, there is a dire need for skilled workers. Should the government not spend its energies strengthening that sector? The finance minister P Chidambaram mentioned in his Budget speech this year that, ?To sustain a high level of economic growth, it is essential to have a reservoir of skilled and trained manpower.? A programme for upgradation of 500 ITIs over five years beginning 2005 is already in place. ?Revised courses in the first lot of 100 upgraded ITIs were started in August 2005 and in the second lot of 100 upgraded ITIs in August 2006. I expect that another 300 ITIs will be covered by August 2009. I propose to grant an interest-free loan up to Rs 2.5 crore to each ITI for upgradation and revision of courses,? he said.
The aim of ITIs is to impart training and certification that is of world standards, through public private partnership, so that this will facilitate ?mobility of labour? and technicians could seek jobs abroad. Says KK Swamy, deputy managing director, Toyota, ?We have tied up with ITIs across the country and participated in curriculum upgradation, provided books and equipment including tool kit. We have also started the Toyota technical training centre in Bangalore where we are training personnel free of cost.? All these initiatives have cost Toyota about Rs 30 crore. Similarly, Maruti has tied up with the government to run four ITIs across the country, mentions IV Rao, chief general manager, Maruti. So, perhaps, the government should concentrate on imparting skills? education, rather than focus on imparting higher education.
One can perhaps take a leaf out of the American government attitude to higher education?which is live and let live. A US government spokesperson says, ? In the US, states charter higher education institutions, but do not participate in their academic operations. Private institutions must follow general law but are free to develop their own internal operating procedures. Accreditation is the mechanism used for insuring academic and infrastructural quality.? Tight regulations are a key problem in the country. The need of the hour, therefore, is for a level-playing field. Regulation should be uniform, whether for an IIM, IIT or an allied institution. Prof Ashok Pundir, associate dean, NITIE, Mumbai, says, ?I do not think the role of the government in higher education can be superceded or ignored. At the same time, the role of private institutions is increasing.?