State governments now push towards premier educational institutions

Aug 16: In the 60th anniversary of our Independence Day, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh emphasized on education and announced various central governments’ plans and its assistance to develop a list of premier educational institutions in each state. The plan shows strong reform elements to improve our higher education with the establishment of Central Universities, one in each of the 16 uncovered states. This purposed sketch under the 11th plan certainly makes all the state governments to acquire at least one of the premier institutes in their respective areas.

Citing primary education programme a success the PM Manmohan Singh in his address to the nation focussed on the quality of secondary education and expressed his vision to establish secondary schools and colleges in every district. He also quoted about our University system and government’s purposed plan to develop 30 new Central Universities.

As of now India has 23 Central Universities and 30 new institutions means it will covers those areas/states which does not have a single one. Also the government has made it clear that if one state provides land free of cost then will have an additional one. So now each state government should try to gain from this as each Central Universities will come with some of the best colleges, medical colleges and engineering institutes.

Apart from Central Universities the government has planned to put together 20 new Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIITs), 8 new Indian Institute of Technology (IITs), 7 new Indian Institute of Management (IIMs), 20 National Institute of Technology (NITs), 5 Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), 2 new School of Planning and Architecture along with 1600 new Industrial Training Institutes.

The above mentioned plan if materializes then it is in actual fact a great step towards reforming the secondary education, higher education in Universities and also the technical education. Now what all respective state governments do is to compel the Central administration to enforce this plan as soon as possible.

However, one of the prime concerns apart from the establishment of new education institutions is to bring a set of reforms in the educational structure in terms of curriculum, admission, association of foreign universities in connection with our national goals and endeavours. Again this is possible when all states come up with a common minimum reform programme for a larger national interest in terms of quality modern education.