Higher Education

Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India (office: 15 August 1947 – 27 May 1964),

initiated reforms to promote higher education, science, technology in India. The Indian Institute

of Technology conceived by a 22 member committee of scholars and entrepreneurs in order to

promote technical education was inaugurated on 18 August 1951 at Kharagpur in West Bengal

by then minister of education Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. Beginning in the 1960s, close ties

with the Soviet Union enabled the Indian Space Research Organization to rapidly develop the

Indian space program and advance nuclear power in India even after the first nuclear test

explosion by India on 18 May 1974 at Pokhran. India accounts for about 10% of all expenditure

on research and development in Asia and the number of scientific publications grew by 45%

over the past five years.[5] However, according to India's science and technology minister, Kapil

Sibal, India is lagging in science and technology compared to developed countries. India has

only 140 researchers per 1,000,000 populations, compared to 4,651 in the United States. India

invested US$3.7 billion in science and technology in 2002–2003. For comparison, China

invested about four times more than India, while the United States invested approximately 75

times more than India on science and technology. Despite this, five Indian Institutes of

Technology were listed among the top 10 science and technology schools in Asia by Asiaweek.[8]

One study argued that Indian science did not suffer from lack of funds but from unethical

practices, the urge to make illegal money, misuse of power, frivolous publications and patents,

faulty promotion policies, victimization for speaking against wrong or corrupt practices in the

management, sycophancy, and brain drain. However, the number of publications by Indian

scientists is characterized by some of the fastest growth rates among major countries. India,

together with China, Iran and Brazil are the only developing countries among 31 nations with

97.5% of the world's total scientific productivity. The remaining 162 developing countries

contribute less than 2.5%.[10]

Jawaharlal Nehru aimed "to convert India’s economy into that of a modern state and to fit her

into the nuclear age and do it quickly." [2] Nehru understood that India had not been at the

forefront of the Industrial Revolution, and hence made an effort to promote higher education, and

science and technology in India.[2]

Nehru's Planning Commission (1950) fixed investment levels, prescribed priorities, divided

funds between agriculture and industry, and divided resources between the state and the federal

governments.[2] The result of the efforts between 1947–1962 saw the area under irrigation

increase by 45 million acres (180,000 km2), food production rise by 34 million metric tons,

installed power generating capacity increase by 79 million kilowatts, and an overall increase of

94 percent in industrial production.[2] The enormous population rise, however, would balance the

gains made by Nehru.[2] The economically beleaguered country was nevertheless able to build a

large scientific workforce, second in numbers only to that of the United States and the Soviet

Union.[2]

Education – provided by the government of India – was free and compulsory up to the Age of

14.[11] More emphasis was paid to the enhancement of vocational and technical skills. [11] J. P.

Naik, member-secretary of the Indian Education Commission, commented on the educational

policies of the time:[

On 18 August 1951 the minister of education Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, inaugurated the Indian

Institute of Technology at Kharagpur in West Bengal.[3] Possibly modeled after the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology these institutions were conceived by a 22 member

committee of scholars and entrepreneurs under the chairmanship of N. R. Sarkar.[3]

The Sino-Indian war (1962) came as a rude awakening to Nehru's military preparedness.[4]

Military cooperation with the Soviet Union – partially aimed at developing advanced military

technology – was pursued during the coming years.[4] Defence Research and Development

Organisation was formed in 1958.

Radio broadcasting was initiated in 1927 but became state responsibility only in 1930. [12] In 1937

it was given the name All India Radio and since 1957 it has been called Akashvani.[12] Limited

duration of television programming began in 1959, and complete broadcasting followed in 1965.[12]

The Indian Government acquired the EVS EM computers from the Soviet Union, which were

used in large companies and research laboratories.[13] Tata Consultancy Services – established in

1968 by the Tata Group – were the country's largest software producers during the 1960s

Higher education

Our university system is, in many parts, in a state of disrepair...In almost half the districts in the

country, higher education enrollments are abysmally low, almost two-third of our universities

and 90 per cent of our colleges are rated as below average on quality parameters... I am

concerned that in many states university appointments, including that of vice-chancellors, have

been politicised and have become subject to caste and communal considerations, there are

complaints of favouritism and corruption.

— Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2007[46]

The Auditorium at Indian Institute of Management Calcutta,Kolkata.

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

VESIT, Engineering College under Mumbai University

The social sciences and business management departments are housed at the Alipore

campus ,University of Calcutta in Kolkata

After passing the Higher Secondary Examination (the grade 12 examination), students may

enroll in general degree programs such as bachelor's degree in arts, commerce or science, or

professional degree programs such as engineering, law or medicine.[47] India's higher education

system is the third largest in the world, after China and the United States.[48] The main governing

body at the tertiary level is the University Grants Commission (India), which enforces its

standards, advises the government, and helps coordinate between the centre and the state.[49]

Accreditation for higher learning is overseen by 12 autonomous institutions established by the

University Grants Commission.[50] In India, education system is reformed. In future, India will be

one of the largest education hub.

As of 2009, India has 20 central universities, 215 state universities, 100 deemed universities, 5

institutions established and functioning under the State Act, and 33 institutes which are of

national importance.[49] Other institutions include 16000 colleges, including 1800 exclusive

women's colleges, functioning under these universities and institutions.[49] The emphasis in the

tertiary level of education lies on science and technology.[51] Indian educational institutions by

2004 consisted of a large number of technology institutes.[52] Distance learning is also a feature

of the Indian higher education system.[52]

Some institutions of India, such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), have been globally

acclaimed for their standard of undergraduate education in engineering. [52] The IITs enroll about

10,000 students annually and the alumni have contributed to both the growth of the private sector

and the public sectors of India.[53] However the IIT's have not had significant impact on

fundamental scientific research and innovation. Several other institutes of fundamental research

such as the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science(IACS), Indian Institute of Science

IISC), Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Harishchandra Research Institute (HRI),

are acclaimed for their standard of research in basic sciences and mathematics. However, India

has failed to produce world class universities both in the private sector or the public sector.[54]

Besides top rated universities which provide highly competitive world class education to their

pupils, India is also home to many universities which have been founded with the sole objective

of making easy money. Regulatory authorities like UGC and AICTE have been trying very hard

to extirpate the menace of private universities which are running courses without any affiliation

or recognition. Indian Government has failed to check on these education shops, which are run

by big businessmen & politicians. Many private colleges and universities do not fulfill the

required criterion by the Government and central bodies (UGC, AICTE, MCI, BCI etc.) and take

students for a ride. For example, many institutions in India continue to run unaccredited courses

as there is no legislation strong enough to ensure legal action against them. Quality assurance

mechanism has failed to stop misrepresentations and malpractices in higher education. At the

same time regulatory bodies have been accused of corruption, specifically in the case of deemed-

universities.[55] In this context of lack of solid quality assurance mechanism, institutions need to

step-up and set higher standards of self-regulation.[56]

Government of India is aware of the plight of higher education sector and has been trying to

bring reforms, however, 15 bills are still awaiting discussion and approval in the Parliament. [57]

One of the most talked about bill is Foreign Universities Bill, which is supposed to facilitate

entry of foreign universities to establish campuses in India. The bill is still under discussion and

even if it gets passed, its feasibility and effectiveness is questionable as it misses the context,

diversity and segment of international foreign institutions interested in India.[58] One of the

approaches to make internationalization of Indian higher education effective is to develop a

coherent and comprehensive policy which aims at infusing excellence, bringing institutional

diversity and aids in capacity building.[59]

Three Indian universities were listed in the Times Higher Education list of the world’s top 200

universities — Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Management, and Jawaharlal

Nehru University in 2005 and 2006.[60] Six Indian Institutes of Technology and the Birla Institute

of Technology and Science – Pilani were listed among the top 20 science and technology schools

in Asia by Asiaweek.[61] The Indian School of Business situated in Hyderabad was ranked

number 12 in global MBA rankings by the Financial Times of London in 2010[62] while the All

India Institute of Medical Sciences has been recognized as a global leader in medical research

and treatment.[63]

Technical education

Institute Main Building, IIT Kharagpur

The number of graduates coming out of technical colleges increased to over 700,000 in 2011

from 550,000 in FY 2010.[64][65] However, 75% of technical graduates and more than 85% of

general graduates are unemployable by India's high-growth global industries, including

information technology.[66]

From the first Five Year Plan onwards India's emphasis was to develop a pool of scientifically

inclined manpower.[67] India's National Policy on Education (NPE) provisioned for an apex body

for regulation and development of higher technical education, which came into being as the All

India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) in 1987 through an act of the Indian parliament.[68] At the Central(federal) level, the Indian Institutes of Technology,the Indian Institute of Space

Science and Technology, the National Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institutes of

Information Technology, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology are deemed of

national importance.[68]

The Indian Institutes of Technology are among the nation's premier education facilities.[68] Since

2002, Several Regional Engineering Colleges(RECs) have been converted into National

Institutes of Technology giving them Institutes of National Importance status.

The Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology : The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural

Gas (MOP&NG), Government of India set up the institute at Jais, Rae Bareli district, Uttar

Pradesh through an Act of Parliament. RGIPT has been accorded "Institute of National

Importance" along the lines of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT),Indian Institute of

Management (IIM) and National Institute Of Technology(NIT). With the status of a Deemed

University, the institute awards degrees in its own right.[68] The UGC has inter-university centres at a number of locations throughout India to promote

common research, e.g. the Nuclear Science Centre at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New

Delhi.[69] Besides there are some British established colleges such as Harcourt Butler

Technological Institute situated in Kanpur and King George Medical University situated in

Lucknow which are important center of higher education.

Central Universities such as Banaras Hindu University, Jamia Millia Islamia University, Delhi

University, Mumbai University, University of Calcutta, etc. are too pioneers of technical

education in the country.

In addition to above institutes, efforts towards the enhancement of technical education are

supplemented by a number of recognized Professional Engineering Societies such as

1. Institution of Mechanical Engineers (India)

2. Institution of Engineers (India)

3. Institution of Chemical Engineering (India)

4. Institution of Electronics and Tele-Communication Engineers (India)

5. Indian Institute of Metals

6. Institution of Industrial Engineers (India)

7. Institute of Town Planners (India)

8. Indian Institute of Architects

that conduct Engineering/Technical Examinations at different levels(Degree and diploma) for

working professionals desirous of improving their technical qualifications.

Higher education in India

India is rushing headlong toward economic success and modernisation, counting on high-tech

industries such as information technology and biotechnology to propel the nation to prosperity.

India's recent announcement that it would no longer produce unlicensed inexpensive generic

pharmaceuticals bowed to the realities of the World Trade Organisation while at the same time

challenging the domestic drug industry to compete with the multinational firms. Unfortunately,

its weak higher education sector constitutes the Achilles' Heel of this strategy. Its systematic

disinvestment in higher education in recent years has yieldedneither world-class research nor

very many highly trained scholars, scientists, or managers to sustain high-tech development.

India's main competitors especially China but also Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea are

investing in large and differentiated higher education systems. They are providing access to large

numbers of students at the bottom of the academic system while at the same time building some

research-based universities that are able to compete with the world's best institutions. The recent

London Times Higher Education Supplement ranking of the world's top 200 universities

included three in China, three in Hong Kong, three in South Korea, one in Taiwan, and one in

India (an Indian Institute of Technology at number 41the specific campus was not specified).

These countries are positioning themselves for leadership in the knowledge-based economies of

the coming era.

There was a time when countries could achieve economic success with cheap labour and low-

tech manufacturing. Low wages still help, but contemporary large-scale development requires a

sophisticated and at least partly knowledge-based economy. India has chosen that path, but will

find a major stumbling block in its university system.

India has significant advantages in the 21st century knowledge race. It has a large higher

education sector the third largest in the world in student numbers, after China and the United

States. It uses English as a primary language of higher education and research. It has a long

academic tradition. Academic freedom is respected. There are a small number of high quality

institutions, departments, and centres that can form the basis of quality sector in higher

education. The fact that the States, rather than the Central Government, exercise major

responsibility for higher education creates a rather cumbersome structure, but the system allows

for a variety of policies and approaches.

Yet the weaknesses far outweigh the strengths. India educates approximately 10 per cent of its

young people in higher education compared with more than half in the major industrialised

countries and 15 per cent in China. Almost all of the world's academic systems resemble a

pyramid, with a small high quality tier at the top and a massive sector at the bottom. India has a

tiny top tier. None of its universities occupies a solid position at the top. A few of the best

universities have some excellent departments and centres, and there is a small number of

outstanding undergraduate colleges. The University Grants Commission's recent major support

of five universities to build on their recognised strength is a step toward recognising a

differentiated academic system and fostering excellence. At present, the world-class institutions

are mainly limited to the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), the Indian Institutes of

Management (IIMs) and perhaps a few others such as the All India Institute of Medical Sciences

and the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research. These institutions, combined, enrol well under 1

per cent of the student population.

India's colleges and universities, with just a few exceptions, have become large, under-funded,

ungovernable institutions. At many of them, politics has intruded into campus life, influencing

academic appointments and decisions across levels. Under-investment in libraries, information

technology, laboratories, and classrooms makes it very difficult to provide top-quality instruction

or engage in cutting edge research. The rises in the number of part-time teachers and the freeze

on new full-time appointments in many places have affected morale in the academic profession.

The lack of accountability means that teaching and research performance is seldom measured.

The system provides few incentives to perform. Bureaucratic inertia hampers change. Student

unrest and occasional faculty agitation disrupt operations. Nevertheless, with a semblance of

normality, faculty administrators are able to provide teaching, coordinate examinations, and

award degrees.

Even the small top tier of higher education faces serious problems. Many IIT graduates, well

trained in technology, have chosen not to contribute their skills to the burgeoning technology

sector in India. Perhaps half leave the country immediately upon graduation to pursue advanced

study abroad and most do not return. A stunning 86 per cent of students in science and

technology fields from India who obtain degrees in the United States do not return home

immediately following their study. Another significant group, of about 30 per cent, decides to

earn MBAs in India because local salaries are higher and are lost to science and technology. A

corps of dedicated and able teachers work at the IITs and IIMs, but the lure of jobs abroad and in

the private sector make it increasingly difficult to lure the best and brightest to the academic

profession.

Few in India are thinking creatively about higher education. There is no field of higher education

research. Those in government as well as academic leaders seem content to do the "same old

thing." Academic institutions and systems have become large and complex. They need good

data, careful analysis, and creative ideas. In China, more than two-dozen higher education

research centres, and several government agencies are involved in higher education policy.

India has survived with an increasingly mediocre higher education system for decades. Now as

India strives to compete in a globalized economy in areas that require highly trained

professionals, the quality of higher education becomes increasingly important. So far, India's

large educated population base and its reservoir of at least moderately well-trained university

graduates have permitted the country to move ahead. But the competition is fierce. China in

particular is heavily investing in improving its best universities with the aim of making a small

group of them world class in the coming decade, and making a larger number internationally

competitive research universities. Other Asian countries are also upgrading higher education

with the aim of building world class-universities. Taiwan, which is a major designer and

producer of IT hardware, is considering merging several of its top technological universities to

create an "Asian MIT."

To compete successfully in the knowledge-based economy of the 21st century, India needs

enough universities that not only produce bright graduates for export but can also support

sophisticated research in a number of scientific and scholarly fields and produce at least some of

the knowledge and technology needed for an expanding economy. How can India build a higher

education system that will permit it to join developed economies? The newly emerging private

sector in higher education cannot spearhead academic growth. Several of the well-endowed and

effectively managed private institutions maintain reasonably high standards, although it is not

clear that these institutions will be able to sustain themselves in the long run. They can help

produce well-qualified graduates in such fields as management, but they cannot form the basis

for comprehensive research universities. This sector lacks the resources to build the facilities

required for quality instruction and research in the sciences. Nor can enough money be earned by

providing instruction in the mainstream arts and sciences disciplines. Most of the private

institutions do not focus on advanced training in the sciences.

Only public universities have the potential to be truly world class institutions. Institutions and

programmes of national prominence have already been identified by the Government. But these

institutions have not been adequately or consistently supported. The top institutions require

sustained funding from public sources. Academic salaries must be high enough to attract

excellent scientists and scholars. Fellowships and other grants should be available for bright

students. An academic culture that is based on merit-based norms and competition for

advancement and research funds is a necessary component, as is a judicious mix of autonomy to

do creative research and accountability to ensure productivity. World class universities require

world class professors and students and a culture to sustain and stimulate them.

A clearly differentiated academic system has not been created in India a system where there are

some clearly identified institutions that receive significantly greater resources than other

universities. One of the main reasons that the University of California at Berkeley is so good is

that other California universities receive much less support. India's best universities require

sustained state support they require the recognition that they are indeed top institutions and

deserve commensurate support. But they also require effective management and an ethos of an

academic meritocracy. At present, the structures are not in place to permit building and

sustaining top-quality programmes even if resources are provided.

A combination of specific conditions and resources are needed to create outstanding universities.

Sustained financial support, with an appropriate mix of accountability and autonomy. The

development of a clearly differentiated academic system including private institutions in which

academic institutions have different missions, resources, and purposes. Managerial reforms and

the introduction of effective administration. Truly merit based hiring and promotion policies for

the academic profession, and similarly rigorous and honest recruitment, selection, and instruction

of students. India cannot build internationally recognized research oriented universities

overnight, but the country has the key elements in place to begin and sustain the process. India

will need to create a dozen or more universities that can compete internationally to fully

participate in the new world economy. Without these universities, India is destined to remain a

scientific backwater.

(Philip G. Altbach is Monan professor of higher education and director of the Center for

International Higher Education at Boston College.)

Higher education

India has seen a consistently high rate of economic growth in the recent years. It has now

become a major player in the global knowledge economy. Skill-based activities have made

significant contribution to this growth. Such activities depend on the large pool of qualified

manpower that is fed by its large higher education system. It is now widely accepted that higher

education has been critical to India’s emergence in the global knowledge economy. Yet, it is

believed that a crisis is plaguing the Indian higher education system. While, the National

Knowledge Commission (NKC) set up by the Prime Minister calls it a ‘quiet crisis’, the Human

Resource Minister calls higher education ‘a sick child’. Industries routinely point towards huge

skill shortages and are of the opinion that growth momentum may not be sustained unless the

problem of skill shortages is addressed.

There appear to be endless problems with the Indian higher education system. The higher

education system produces graduates that are unemployable, though there are mounting skill

shortages in a number of sectors. The standards of academic research are low and declining.

An unwieldy affiliating system, inflexible academic structure, uneven capacity across subjects,

eroding autonomy of academic institutions, low level of public funding, archaic and

dysfunctional regulatory environment are some of its many problems. Finally, it is widely held

that it suffers from several systemic deficiencies and is driven by populism, and in the absence of

reliable data, there is little informed public debate. More than 35 years ago, Nobel laureate

Amartya Sen, while analysing the crisis in Indian education, rather than attributing the crisis in

Indian education to administrative neglect or to thoughtless action, pointed out that the ‘grave

failures in policy-making in the field of education require the analysis of the characteristics of

the economic and social forces operating in India, and response of public policy to these forces’

(Amartya Sen, ‘The Crisis in Indian education’, Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial Lectures, 10–11

March 1970). He emphasised that ‘due to the government’s tendency to formulate educational

policies based on public pressure, often wrong policies are pursued.’ Unfortunately, it is believed

that policy-making suffers from similar failure even today. Rather than pragmatism, it is

populism, ideology and vested interests that drive policy. It seeks to achieve arbitrarily set goals

that are often elusive and, more than that, pursued half-heartedly.

Worldwide higher education reforms

The emergence of a global economy due to increased trade, investment and mobility of people

and, more recently, work across borders has forced nation states to adapt their systems of higher

education to the changed global realities. Rather than continuing with their inward looking

policies, several countries are reshaping their systems of higher education for making them

globally competitive. Pragmatism rather than ideology is driving this change. The United States

of America has major plans for investment in higher education. The United Kingdom has

injected new dynamism in the higher education sector through competition and incentives. China

has undertaken a package of comprehensive reforms in higher education for over the past two

decades. The government in China has declared education, science and technology to be the

strategic driving forces of sustainable economic growth. Pakistan has embarked upon wide-

ranging systemic reforms.

Despite the fact that the United States has the finest system of higher education in the world, it

had set up a commission to examine the future of higher education in September 2005, with a

mandate to ensure that America remains the world’s leader in higher education and innovation.1

While the report of the commission has been received and is being processed for

implementation, the US government has already committed to invest USD134 billion in higher

education over the next 10 years. In the United Kingdom, where higher education is primarily in

the public sector, faced with problems of deteriorating standards due to inadequate funding and

failing accountability, several innovations in financing, such as performance-based funding for

teaching and research and portable students’ aid, and so on, were introduced over the past

decade. This helped the UK higher education system to become one of the best systems of higher

education in the world again. In a highly sensitive and bold decision, the UK government has

now allowed the universities to compete for students and charge variable fees, bringing an end to

the regulated fee regime in the UK (DfES, 2003).

Higher education reforms in China were initiated along with wider economic reforms to become

a market economy in the year 1978. Prior to that, higher education was in the public sector.

There was no tuition fee. The government even took care of living expenses of the students.

Since then, the system of higher education has radically changed. The concept of cost-sharing

and cost recovery was introduced in the early years of reforms. Tuition fees have now been made

compulsory. The higher education institutions in China were expected to diversify their revenue

sources and, therefore, allowed to have affiliated enterprises

(Sanyal and Martin, 2006).

Apart from increased support from alternative sources, higher education received increased

financial allocations from the government. Thus, in spite of massive expansion in enrolment,

average funding per student did not go down. Through a national legislation in 2002, China

proactively involved the private sector to contribute and invest in higher education. This

accelerated the growth. To nurture excellence, a selective approach in funding was adopted. In

1993, special financial allocations were provided for China’s top 100 institutions to upgrade

them to international standards. In the year 1998, an even higher-level funding was provided to

nine top universities to make them world class. Australia initiated comprehensive reforms in

higher education in 2003. Government funding was significantly enhanced along with increased

provision for subsidised loans and scholarships for students. The reform package included areas

as diverse as teaching, workplace productivity, governance, student financing, research, cross-

sectoral

collaboration and quality (Commonwealth of Australia, 2003). Apart from the advanced

countries, many developing countries took up ambitious programmes to reform their higher

education sector. It was realised that though primary and secondary education is important, it is

the quality and size of the higher education system that will differentiate a dynamic economy

from a marginalised one in the global knowledgebased economy.

Based on the recommendation of the Task Force for Improvement of Higher Education,

neighbouring Pakistan replaced its University Grants Commission (found ineffective) by a

proactive Higher Education Commission that initiated wide-ranging systemic reforms in 2002.

Public funding for higher education was increased significantly from Rs 3.8 billion in 2002 to Rs

33.7 billion in 2007. To bring in a degree of transparency and accountability, recurrent funds

were allocated amongst universities on the basis of a funding formula. To address faculty related

issues, changes in the salary structure of academics under the tenure track system were made.

Salaries of active research scholars were increased significantly. Stringent requirements for the

appointment and promotion of faculty members and strict quality control of PhD programmes

were put in place. The reform programmes also addressed the issue of access to quality teaching,

learning and research resources (Agarwal, 2008b).

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Changing Policy on Higher Education in India

From the early 20th century, there have been several high level commissions set up to provide

policy orientation to the development of higher education in India. On the basis of the report of

the Sadler Commission (1917–19), also referred to as the Calcutta University Commission, the

Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) was set up to define the general aims of

educational policy and coordinate the work of various provinces and universities by guarding

against needless

duplication and overlapping in the provision of the more costly forms of education. The

University Education Commission, presided over by Dr S. Radhakrishnan, in its report in 1949

recommended that university education should be placed in the Concurrent List so that there is a

national guarantee of minimum standards of university education. The constituent assembly did

not agree to it. It was much later, in 1976, that education was made a concurrent subject with the

42nd Amendment of the Constitution.

The Kothari Commission (1964–66) examined various aspects of education at all levels and gave

a very comprehensive report full of insight and wisdom. This report became the basis of the

National Policy on Education, 1968. With this, a common structure of education (10+2+3) was

introduced and implemented by most states over a period of time. In the school curricula, in

addition to laying down a common scheme of studies for boys and girls, science and

mathematics were incorporated as compulsory subjects and work experience assigned a place of

importance. A beginning was also made in restructuring of courses at the undergraduate level.

Centres of advanced studies were set up for post-graduate education and research. Detailed

estimates were

made to meet requirements of educated manpower in the country.

In 1985, a comprehensive appraisal of the existing educational scene was made. This was

followed by a countrywide debate. It was noted that while the achievements were impressive in

themselves,

the general formulations incorporated in the 1968 policy did not, however, get translated into a

detailed strategy of implementation, accompanied by the assignment of specific responsibilities

and financial and organisational support. It was further noted that problems of access, quality,

quantity, utility and financial outlay, accumulated over the years, had assumed such massive

proportions that these required to be tackled with the utmost urgency.

In the background explicated previously, the National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986 was put

in place. It was noted in the preamble to the policy that education in India stood at the

crossroads, and neither normal linear expansion nor the existing pace and nature of improvement

of the situation would help. It was also noted that education has an acculturating role. It refines

sensitivities and perceptions that contribute to national cohesion, a scientific temper and

independence of mind and spirit—thus furthering the goals of socialism, secularism and

democracy enshrined in our Constitution. Education develops manpower for different levels of

the economy. It is also the substrate on which research and development flourish, being the

ultimate guarantee of national self-reliance. Accepting the fact that education is a unique

investment in the present and the future, a very comprehensive policy document was approved in

1986. This was supplemented with a Programme of Action (PoA) in 1992.

On review now, one sees that many of the recommendations of the NPE, 1986 read with PoA,

1992 have been only partly fulfilled. Moreover, there has been no effort to modify the previous

policy prescriptions or to develop a new one. After the economic reforms were undertaken in the

early 1990s, their influence on development of higher education has been ignored. With the

economic reforms of the 1990s, the private sector has come to occupy a central role in the

economic development of the nation. There is a need for a holistic review of the instruments

currently available for managing the higher education system such as the University Grants

Commission (UGC) Act, the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) Act, and so on,

which have become outdated in the present context. In this context, it is important to develop a

new national policy framework for higher education in the current and emerging contexts. Such a

policy framework should not be developed by political processes, but by an independent, high-

powered

commission.

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Recent Developments in Indian Higher Education

Higher education has received a lot of attention in India over the past few years. There are four

reasons for this recent focus. First, country’s weak higher education system is being blamed for

skill shortages in several sectors of economy. Second, reservation quotas in higher education

institutions, particularly the more reputed ones that provide access to high status and best-paid

jobs became a highly divisive issue, central to the policy of inclusive growth and distributive

justice, and hence politically very important. Third, in the backdrop of the first two

developments, it began to be argued that the country would not be able to sustain its growth

momentum and maintain competitiveness unless problems with higher education are fixed. Last,

demand for higher

education continues to outpace the supply due to growing population of young people, gains in

school education, the growing middle class and their rising aspirations.

It is widely believed that technological advances and a shift in demographic provide India with a

window of opportunity to productively engage its huge pool of human resources, and become a

leader in both the rapidly expanding sectors of services and highly skilled manufacturing. This

would, however, require revamping the higher education sector. Hence many steps have been

taken to augment supply, improve quality and fix many of the problems faced by higher

education. The National Knowledge Commission (NKC) that was set up to examine the higher

education sector (amongst other things) made several useful and important recommendations.

The Government of India has increased funding significantly during the Eleventh Five Year

Plan. Many new institutions have been planned and some of them are already operational. There

are many good ideas in the plan document. All these efforts, however, appear to be somewhat

disconnected. Some even appear to be at cross-purposes with each other. Several suggestions

appear to be merely impressionistic views of individuals, rather than being supported by data and

research. Overall, these efforts do not give a sense of an integrated reform agenda for Indian

higher education. And in absence of credible data and good analysis, the media continues to

perpetuate and exacerbate certain fallacies and inconsistencies.

With ambiguity in defining its purpose and vagueness about its quality, debate on higher

education is usually full of rhetoric. As pointed out by Kapur and Crowley, for the higher

education ‘sector whose main purpose is to train people with strong analytical skills, it is ironical

that

its own self-analysis is replete with homilies and platitudes, rather than strong evidence’ (Kapur

and Crowley, 2008). Institutions of higher education today are an integral organ of the state and

economy. They are embedded in the history and culture of a nation and are shaped by

its contemporary realities, ideologies and vested interests. India’s large size, long history and

diverse culture and the complicated nature of Indian polity and policy process make Indian

higher education a very complex enterprise.

India is increasingly being viewed as an emerging global power, a power that will shape the

global balance of power in the 21st century. There are enormous obstacles, however, that India

will have to overcome in order to sustain its present trajectory of economic growth. One of the

most significant of which is the crisis in India’s higher education system, something that goes

unnoticed amid the glare of the engineers, doctors and managers that seems to be emerging from

India’s premier professional institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian

Institutes of Management.

To rectify this, the Indian government has proposed to set up a dozen new so-called world-class

universities, in addition to 16 new Central universities, in an effort to expand quality higher

education in India. The blueprint has been formulated by the University Grants Commission and

it is expected that the government will be able to place the enabling legislation before the next

session of the Parliament. These world class universities will have an all-India common entrance

examination, a student-count not exceeding 12,000, the best of faculty with incentives over and

above regular pay, a curriculum revised every three years, a semester system, private sector

funding, vice-chancellors with at least decade-long teaching experience, collaboration with

universities and institutes in India and abroad, academic creativity free from red-tapism.

Education has been placed at the centre of the forthcoming 11th Five-Year Plan, described as

India’s ‘education plan.’ The outlay for education is being increased from 7.7 per cent of the

total gross budgetary allocations in the 10th Plan to more than 19 per cent in the 11th Plan with

an unprecedented five-fold increase in education spending in nominal terms. Again, the Prime

Minister has repeatedly emphasized the need for reforms in the universities and called for a ‘new

revolution in modern education’ with an emphasis on ‘a quantum jump in science education and

research.’ The National Knowledge Commission, a high-level advisory body established by the

Prime Minister to recommend changes in the higher education system ‘with the objective of

transforming India into a knowledge society,’ has also underlined the need that India’s higher

education system needs a systematic overhaul. But little of substance seems to have changed on

the ground.

Knowledge is the key variable that will define the global distribution of power in the 21st

century and India has also embarked on a path of economic success relying on its high-tech

industries. But given the fragile state of India’s higher education system, it is not clear if India

will be able to sustain its present growth trajectory. While India’s nearest competitor, China is

re-orienting and investing in its higher education sector to meet the challenges of the future,

India continues to ignore the problem as if the absence of world-class research in Indian

universities is something that will rectify itself on its own. While India may be producing well-

trained engineers and managers from its flagship IITs and IIMs, it is not doing so in sufficient

numbers. There is also a growing concern that while private engineering and management

institutions are flourishing due to their rising demand, their products are not of the quality that

can help India compete effectively in the global marketplace.

India has the third largest higher education system in the world, behind only the US and China,

that is churning out around 2.5 million graduates every year. Not only is this just about 10

percent of India’s youth but the quality of this output is also below par. If we leave aside the

IITs, the IIMs, and some other institutions such as the All India Institute of Medical Science, the

Indian Institute of Science, and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, we will find a higher

education sector that is increasingly unwilling and unable to bear the weight of the rising

expectations of an emerging India. The Indian universities, which should have been the centre of

cutting edge research and hub of intellectual activity, are more in the news for political

machinations than for research excellence. Years of underinvestment in higher education and a

mistaken belief in providing uniform support to all universities irrespective of their output has

made sure that neither the academics have adequate support to provide top-quality education to

their students nor do they have any incentive to undertake cutting-edge research. India

desperately needs research-oriented globally recognized universities to be able to participate in

the modern-day knowledge-based global economy to its full potential.

A crisis in the university, the home of reason, is perhaps the profoundest crisis for a democratic

nation. Though the crisis that he was drawing attention to arose from a different set of issues

facing the US academia in the 1960s and 1970s, the present crisis in the Indian universities is

equally profound and has the potential to directly affect the future of India. It has been pointed

out that a process of privatization of higher education system is underway in India, a result not of

some comprehensive programme of education reform but as a consequence of the collapse of the

public sector and the withdrawal of the middle classes. This is indeed a worrisome trend and it is

hoped that the India realises that just by pumping more money into the system or by building

more universities it will not be able to remedy the underlying rot in the system. While the blue-

print for establishing world-class universities is the necessary first-step, it will not solve the

problem on its own. The focus on quantity is not the correct approach towards solving the

problem of declining quality of Indian higher education system. The policy-makers do not seem

to have a clear grasp of what it takes to build institutions that can produce the kind of research

and teaching that Indian higher education desperately needs.

Higher education cannot be reduced to mere economic instrumentality with its sole focus on

equipping students with the practical skills needed by employers. Nor should the purpose of our

higher education be simply to produce engineers and scientists able to compete with the Chinese.

Reduction of learning to job skills rather than an inquiry into the larger issues of life can be

disastrous in the long run. India will have to nurture learning for its own sake and to foster other

less quantifiable and profitable but still valuable features of higher education. If the main goals

of higher education are teaching students to think critically, broaden their intellectual horizons

and promote self-awareness, then the Indian higher education system should be considered a

comprehensive failure. And it is not clear if the government is interested in an overarching

overhaul that can stem the rot in the nation’s higher education system.

Tags: Harish V Pant , 99th edition of Indian Science Congress , Harish V Pant blog Indian

Institutes of Technology , Indian Institutes of Management

India has one of the largest Higher Education system in the world. There are a large number of

Indian as well as foreign students who a pply every year to Indian universities and colleges. For

all those who wish to study in India, it is very important to get prior and correct information

about the courses that you would like to undertake, the university you want to apply to and how

to go about the application procedure. For an international student, it is also important to know

the accommodation facilities, weather conditions, food habits and cost of living in the city in

which he or she intends to study.

Central Government is responsible for major policy relating to higher education in the country. It

provides grants to UGC and establishes central universities in the country. The Central

Government is also responsible for declaration of Education Institutions as 'Deemed to be

University' on the recommendation of the UGC.

State Governments are responsible for establishment of State Universities and colleges, and

provide plan grants for their development and non-plan grants for their maintenance.

The coordination and cooperation between the Union and the States is brought about in the field

of education through the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE).

Special Constitutional responsibility of the Central Government: Education is on the 'Concurrent

list' subject to Entry 66 in the Union List of the Constitution. This gives exclusive Legislative

Power to the Central Govt. for co-ordination and determination of standards in Institutions of

higher education or research and scientific and technical institutions.

University Grants Commission (UGC) is responsible for coordination, determination and

maintenance of standards, release of grants.

Professional councils are responsible for recognition of courses, promotion of professional

institutions and providing grants to undergraduate programmes and various awards. The statutory

professional councils are:

• All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE)

• Medical Council of India (MCI)

• Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR)

• National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE)

• Dental Council of India (DCI)

• Pharmacy Council of India (PCI)

• Indian Nursing Council (INC)

• Bar Council of India (BCI)

• Central Council of Homeopathy (CCH)

• Central Council for Indian Medicine (CCIM)

• Council of Architecture

• Distance Education Council

• Rehabilitation Council

Advantages of Studying in India

India is fast becoming a major economic power in the world today. And if its growth trend

continues for some more years, it would soon be playing a major role in the world economy

along with China. This itself has been a major cause of attraction for many international students.

Moreover, India's successful stint with democracy has also been a major magnetic force for

scholars around the world. However, apart from knowing India well, there are some other

advantages that are attracting students to study in India. Some of these are –

Low Cost:

The cost of education in India is quite low as compared to many other countries of the world.

Quality Education:

Government of India established statutory bodies to ensure quality of education in India. There

are some educational institutes in India that provide world class education. Indian institute of

technology, Indian institutes of management, Indian Institutes of Science, National Law Schools,

Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University are some such Institutes. The government of

India is also speeding up the efforts to establish more such institutes that can offer quality

education in India.

Consultation Service:

The government of India provides consultation service to the interested international students

through Education Consultants of India (Ed.CIL). Thus one can get all the information about the

Indian education system, cost of education, duration, visa, accommodation facilities even before

landing up in India.

Unique Courses:

Apart from above mentioned advantages, one can also study some unique courses that were

discovered and developed by the traditional knowledge system of India. Ayurveda, Sankrit,

Yoga, Hindi are some such courses that enthuse many international sudents.

Structure of higher education in India

In the Indian system, higher education includes the education imparted after the 10+2 stage - ten

years of primary and secondary education followed by two years of higher secondary education.

The first degree, the Bachelor's degrees, is obtained after three years study in the case of liberal

arts, and four years in the case of most professional degrees (four and half in case of medicine

and five/six years in case of law}. The Master's program is usually of two years duration. The

research degrees (M.Phil and Ph.D) take variable time depending upon the individual student.

The postgraduate degree programs involve 2 years of study after first degree. These include

M.Tech, MD, MS and MDS programs that take 2 years after B.Tech and MBBS/BDS

respectively.

The M.Phil. program, is of one and-half year duration. It is a preparatory program for doctoral

level studies. PhD program is research study for 2 years and can take several years while D.Sc.

and D.Litt. are awarded by some universities after PhD for original contributions.

In addition to the degree programs, a number of diploma and certificate programs are also

available in universities. Their range is wide and they cover anything from poetics to computers.

Some of them are undergraduate diploma programs and others postgraduate programs. The

duration varies from one year to three years.

Universities, deemed universities and institutions of national importance are largely autonomous

institutions entitled by law to design, develop and offer programs which they consider relevant

and appropriate for the national needs. Colleges and other institutes in turn, are expected to be

regulated by the Universities with which they are affiliated or associated. Given the wide reach

and variety of institutions and programs of higher education, a number of professional,

regulatory bodies and councils have been established to ensure proper development of higher

education in the country in a coordinated manner.

Technical Education Overview

Technical Education plays a vital role in human resource development of the country by creating

skilled manpower, enhancing industrial productivity and improving the quality of life. Technical

Education covers courses and programmes in engineering, technology, management,

architecture, town planning, pharmacy and applied arts & crafts, hotel management and catering

technology.

The technical education system in the country can be broadly classified into three categories –

Central Government funded institutions, State Government/State-funded institutions & Self-

financed institutions. The 65 Centrally funded institution of technical and science education are

as under:

• IITs – 15

• IIMs – 7

• IISc, Bangalore – 1

• IISERs – 5

• NITs – 20

• IIITs – 4

• NITTTRs – 4

• Others (SPA, ISMU, NERIST, SLIET, NITIE & NIFFT, CIT) – 9

• Total - 65

Besides the above, there are four Boards of Apprenticeship Training (BOATs).

The Central Government is also implementing the following schemes/programmes: -

(i) Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP) assisted by the World Bank.

(ii) Indian National Digital Library for Science & Technology (INDEST).

There is one Public Sector Undertaking, namely, Educational Consultants India Ltd. (Ed.CIL)

under the Ministry. There are also Apex Councils, namely the All India Council for Technical

Education (AICTE) and Council of Architecture (COA).

Living in India

Living in India is very inexpensive. Most international students have a very comfortable and safe

living experience for as low as US $ 150 per month. Like in any society, India offeres many cost

options. There are 7 star, deluxe, newly built condominium complexes that cost a bundle and

then there are safe, decent apartments in better neighbourhoods that rent for a reasonable amount.

You can choose your option depending on your budget and your desired lifestyle.

Many of the colleges have a hostel or dormitory facility for their students. Most of these hostels

are intended for Indian students who are on a budget and looking for economical housing. While

they offer safe and comfortable living quarters, they may impose several restrictions on the

lifestyles that some international students may be accustomed to. This option is recommended

for those international students on a budget, and who are willing to sacrifice a bit on their

lifestyle.

Students have the option of renting housing on their own. Students can rent an apartment on their

own or share an apartment with other students.

Climate of India

The climate of India defies easy generalisation, comprising a wide range of weather conditions

across a large geographic scale and varied topography.

India's unique geography and geology strongly influence its climate; this is particularly true of

the Himalayas in the north and the Thar Desert in the northwest. The Himalayas act as a barrier

to the frigid katabatic winds flowing down from Central Asia. Thus, North India is kept warm or

only mildly cold during winter; in summer, the same phenomenon makes India relatively hot.

Although the Tropic of Cancer—the boundary between the tropics and subtropics—passes

through the middle of India, the whole country is considered to be tropical.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) designates four official seasons

Winter, occurring from December to early April. The year's coldest months are December and

January, when temperatures average around 10–15 °C (50–59 °F) in the northwest; temperatures

rise as one proceeds towards the equator, peaking around 20–25 °C (68–77 °F) in mainland

India's southeast.

Summer or pre-monsoon season, lasting from April to June (April to July in northwestern India).

In western and southern regions, the hottest month is April; for northern regions, May is the

hottest month. Temperatures average around 32–40 °C (90–104 °F) in most of the interior.

Monsoon or rainy season, lasting from June to September. The season is dominated by the humid

southwest summer monsoon, which slowly sweeps across the country beginning in late May or

early June. Monsoon rains begin to recede from North India at the beginning of October. South

India typically receives more precipitation.

Post-monsoon season, lasting from October to December. In northwestern India, October and

November are usually cloudless. Tamilnadu receives most of its annual precipitation in the

northeast monsoon season. The Himalayan states, being more temperate, experience an

additional two seasons: autumn and spring. Traditionally, Indians note six seasons, each about

two months long. These are the spring, summer, monsoon season, early autumn, late autumn, and

winter. These are based on the astronomical division of the twelve months into six parts. The

ancient Hindu calendar also reflects these seasons in its arrangement of months.

Languages in India

Language being the most important medium of communication and education, their development

occupies and important place in the National Policy on Education and Programme of Action.

Therefore, promotion and development of Hindi and other 22 languages listed in the schedule

VIII of the Constitution including Sanskrit and Urdu on the one hand and English as well as the

foreign languages on the other hand have received due attention. In fulfilling the constitutional

responsibility, the Department of Higher Education is assisted by autonomous organization and

subordinate offices.

Modern India, as per the 1961 Census, has more than 1652 mother tongues, genetically

belonging to five different language families. The 1991 Census had 10,400 raw returns of mother

tongues and they were rationalized into 1576 mother tongues. They are further rationalized into

216 mother tongues, and grouped under 114 languages: Austro-Asiatic (14 languages, with a

total population of 1.13%), Dravidian (17 languages, with a total population of 22.53%), Indo-

European (Indo-Aryan, 19 languages, with a total population of 75.28%, and Germanic, 1

language, with a total population of 0.02%), Semito-Harmitic (1 language, with a total

population of 0.01%), and Tibeto-Burman (62 languages with a total population of 0.97%).It

may be noted that mother tongues having a population of less than 10000 on all India basis or not

possible to identify on the basis of available linguistic information have gone under ' others.

Over the next five years India will establish 200 new universities and 40 new high-level

institutes. Nine additional IITs will also be established, bringing the total number of IITs to

16. This was stated by Indian human resource development minister Kapil Sibal in the Lok

Sabha recently. A sum of Rs800 billion, the biggest-ever allocation, is being set aside in the

12th five-year-plan of India (2012-2017) to propel it into a strong knowledge-based

economy.

India has presently 17 percent of its youth between the ages of 17 of 23 enrolled in the higher

education sector (as opposed to Pakistan’s 7.6 percent). It plans to increase this enrolment to 30

percent of the same age group by the year 2030 (Chetan Chauhan, The Hindustan Times, April

25). India decided to replace its University Grants Commission with a stronger federally funded

organisation, National Commission of Higher Education and Research. This was approved by the

Indian Cabinet in December 2011.

The recent steps taken by India are the result of a detailed presentation made to the Indian prime

minister in July 2006 by Prof C N R Rao about the threat posed by the remarkable

transformation underway in higher education in Pakistan. In an article entitled “Pak threat to

Indian science,” Neha Mehta wrote: “Pakistan may soon join China in giving India serious

competition in science.” (The Hindustan Times on July 23, 2006.)

This presentation to the Indian prime minister set in motion a whole set of reforms in the higher

education sector in India with a sharp increase in the salary structures of academics and a

manifold increase in the budget for higher education. India had been giving the highest priority

to higher education, science and technology for decades. The first prime minister, Jawaharlal

Nehru, had already laid the foundations of modern India in the 1950s and 1960s. The prime

minister of India himself headed what he considered to be the most important ministry in India –

science and technology.

The progress made by the higher education sector in Pakistan in the last decade is reflected from

the increase in enrolment from 276,000 students in 2003 to 803,000 in 2011, increase in number

of universities and degree-awarding institutes from 59 in the year 2000 to 137 by 2011, and an

increase in international research publications from only 636 in 2000 to 6,200 in 2011. The PhD

output too underwent an explosive growth. During the 55-year period from 1947 to 2002, only

3,281 PhDs had been granted by all our universities (a shocking average of about 3-4 PhDs per

university per year)! During the subsequent eight-year period from 2003 to 2010, this number

was exceeded and 3,658 PhDs were granted. There was maximum emphasis on quality, as all

PhD theses were evaluated by at least two top experts in technologically advanced countries

before approval.

The silent revolution that occurred in the higher education sector in Pakistan was lauded by

neutral international experts and agencies and numerous reports published on it. In a book

published by the Royal Society (London) entitled A New Golden Age the example of Pakistan

was cited as the best model to be followed by other developing countries. Nature, the world’s

leading science journal, published four editorials and several articles on the transformation that

was occurring in Pakistan and advised the new government in 2008 not to go back to the “stone

age” that existed prior to the reforms introduced after 2002 in higher education.

The chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Education announced it as “Pakistan’s

golden period in higher education” and called for my reappointment after I had resigned in

protest against the suspension of scholarships of HEC scholars sent abroad. I was conferred a

high civil award by the Austrian government and the TWAS (Italy) Prize for institution building

for leading these changes.

After the remarkable progress achieved in Pakistan in the higher education during 2003-2008, we

have been systematically trying to destroy the one sector that had raised a gleam of hope among

the masses. First, the development budget of the higher education sector was slashed by about 50

percent in 2009. Then, the scholarships of the several thousand Pakistani students studying in

foreign universities were withheld, forcing them to go literally begging for funds on the streets of

countries where they had gone to brighten their future. This was followed by the status of the

executive director of the HEC of a federal secretary being withdrawn, thereby preventing the

HEC from holding Departmental Development Working Party (DDWP) meetings and approving

projects for Pakistani universities. The projects to establish foreign engineering universities in

major cities of Pakistan were closed down. This would have saved Rs50 billion annually and

provided Pakistani students with the opportunity of getting quality education with foreign

degrees without going abroad.

The HEC had found that 51 of our “honourable” parliamentarians had forged degrees and those

of another 250 parliamentarians were suspect. In any other country such persons would have had

to go to jail for cheating and forgery. However the Election Commission, instead of declaring

their elections null and void, became a party to the game, in clear defiance of the orders of the

Supreme Court of Pakistan. Why the Supreme Court has chosen to look the other way in this

matter of enormous national importance is beyond understanding. A group of these “honourable”

parliamentarians with forged degrees plotted to shred the HEC into pieces, and under their

pressure a government notification was issued on 30th November 2010 shredding the HEC into

pieces.

Higher education in India has become a pivotal topic of discussion of late. It has been realized that for a bright future

country needs to strengthen its higher education roots first. Owing to this, the central and state governments of India,

most often than not, try to come out with policies and regulations that can bring effective and timely changes in this

sector and enhance its reputation on the global platform. Education is a part of concurrent list and Indian government,

especially the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Department of Higher Education, at Center is

responsible for synchronization and formation of policies that can elevate the standards of higher education or

research, and technical and scientific centers. However, in order to implement the devised policies, central

government has set up certain statutory agencies, such as Universities Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council

for Technical Education (AICTE), and Distance Education Council (DEC).

As far as the discharge of responsibilities is concerned, UGC is in charge of looking after the quality of higher

education in India through the process of coordination, maintenance and decision-making. AICTE has assumed the

planning and coordination roles for the technical education sphere in the country. When it comes to the development

and growth of Open University and distance mode of learning, DEC takes the charge. The statutory body DEC

scrutinizes the teaching, research and examination system of these higher education centers.

Aside from this, there are several other statutory or autonomous education bodies also which have been vested with

significant power and authority to ensure betterment of the higher education system in India. Some of these are listed

below:

Medical Council of India (MCI)

Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR)

National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE)

Dental Council of India (DCI)

Pharmacy Council of India (PCI)

Indian Nursing Council (INC)

Bar Council of India (BCI)

Central Council of Homeopathy (CCH)

Central Council for Indian Medicine (CCIM)

Council of Architecture

Rehabilitation Council

State Councils of Higher Education

This is not all because MHRD also has to take charge in the areas of data management, capacity building and

promotion of the unprivileged sections including minority group, women, etc. In order to carry out these and other

tasks, education department has introduced some of the aided premier organizations/ centers, which have eventually

become the center of excellence in their own right. Some of these autonomous institutions through which the

department ensures implementation of its policies include:

Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs)

Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore,

Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad

Central Universities, including IGNOU

Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs)

National Institutes of Technology (NITs)

Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs)

School of Planning and Architecture

Administrative Structure for Higher Education in India

The Minister of Human Resource Development chairs the Ministry of Human Resource Development and receives

support from the Minister of State. It is the Minister who makes policies and guides the entire Ministry.

As far as the executive level is concerned, a Secretary is appointed to head the Department of Higher Education, and

he or she receives assistance from Additional Secretary (Higher Education), Financial Advisor, Joint Secretaries or

officers of the same repute. The duties and responsibilities of the department are, further, segregated between 6

divisions. These include:

University & Higher Education, Minorities Education

Distance Education & Scholarships

Integrated Finance Division

Technical Education

UNESCO, International Cooperation, Statistics, Policy, Copyrights and Book Promotion

Administration, Planning, Languages, and Coordination

Measures for Development of Higher Education in India

Higher education in India is considered among the largest education systems of the world. And, in order to enhance

this system further, the Indian government has adopted various measures. These measures are thought of at

numerous levels and then, executed. These include:

orming National Education Policy and supervising its implementation

Making development plans for University, Higher Education and Technical Education

Emphasizing on the education needs of unprivileged groups, such as SC/ ST / OBC and girls, physically challenged

and minority groups

Providing scholarships to proficient candidates

Focusing on the growth of all Indian languages

Encouraging international relationship in the sphere of education (such as with UNESCO)

Promoting books and Copyright Act

Recent Development in Higher Education in India

In the year 2010-2011, Indian government has assigned 2350.00 crore to UGC under plan grants for extending

assistance to state based universities and colleges. Central Universities (CUs) & Deemed Universities (DU) are

granted Rs 1980 and 60 crores for providing assistance to Central Universities, Deemed Universities, etc. Like these,

other education organizations are also granted aids to help higher education sector flourish and grow.

Further, as per the role of state governments is concerned in this sector, the state governments enjoy the power of

setting up universities and colleges in their respective states. They have to build plan and non-plan grants to ensure

the development and maintenance of the institutions.

Undoubtedly, the Central Government is entrusted with the exclusive legislative rights in the field of higher education.

But, when it comes to effective implementation of policies and discharge of responsibilities, both central and state

governments have to cooperate and coordinate with each other; for this purpose, the Central Advisory Board of

Education (CABE) has been formed.