Education – On the Right Track Finally?

Since he was appointed as Education Minister, Kapil Sabil has been a whirlwind of activity. He has tried to draw a balance between the pressure of school and the quality of education. Primary school education has become compulsory. The Board Exam for the 10th class has been abolished. Also recognizing that the government will not be able to meet the need of the young growing population, he has opened the doors to private sector, but in a much more disciplined way than was done previously. He is considering allowing foreign universities to open campuses in India. While he has done a lot more in the short period of his appointment, a lot more needs to be done.

There is a need to enforce discipline among the educators in government institutions. According to a study, teacher absenteeism is a high 25%in government schools. A reason for the high rate of truancy among girl’s students is the lack of toilets. Studies have also noted that attendance particularly in poorer rural areas goes up when mid day meals are served. These suggestions have been made and written about time and time again.

Allowing private sector participation is a good idea, provided it is closely monitored and audited by independent third parties, rather than government departments. There are independent NGO’s who play this role. The government has to be selective about who is given the go ahead to set up an educational institution, whether it is a school or a university. Look at what has happened in Australia which to encourage income from education and to have a pipeline of workers at the low end skill base, allowed the establishment of vocational schools of dubious reputation which was used a conduit for indirect migration into Australia.


On the issue of allowing foreign universities to set up campuses, one has to remember that the reason why institutions establish their reputations is not just because of their class room lectures, but the supporting infrastructure, the research labs, the libraries, the interaction between the students themselves and the faculty. Having flying in academics lecturing in high rise campuses will not quite be the same. You will not have top tier universities lining up, as they would not want to dilute their brand equity.


Finally we have home grown world class institutions such as the IIM’s, the IIT’s , the Indian Institute of Science and more. They have been around for years and have established a formidable reputation. They have alumni who have done well and would be happy to contribute to the endowment funds. It appears that there is reluctance to encourage this as the regulators would loose their controls over the institutions.

Recognizing that the government does not have the necessary funds, its role should be that of an incubator in establishing these intuitions and they are able to raise endowments and become independent similar to the institutions in the United States. One of course has to ensure that there is a certain incubation period and that no one subsequently tried to gain control.

With one of the worlds youngest population base, we need to make sure that this demographic advantage does not become a demographic disadvantage because of a lack of education and job opportunities.