To achieve the target of developed India by the year 2047, world -class education will be required in the country. This has been said in a report based on quality higher education by NITI Aayog.
The report said that India needs to pay attention to important aspects like providing human resources in higher educational institutions. Especially there is a need to pay attention to universities and educational institutions being run by states and state governments. This is because under the new education policy (2020), the number of students studying in higher educational institutions will increase from 4.3 crore to about nine crore. Of these, seven crore students will study in universities run by state and state governments. At present, there are 495 state universities inside the country, with more than 46 thousand educational institutions affiliated to. Most of this are inside Uttar Pradesh.
The Commission took feedback from the Central and State Government officials to understand the challenges related to the higher education sector, their policy solutions and strategic intervention to prepare the report. Along with this, extensive discussions were also held with Vice Chancellors, Senior Educationists and heads of State Higher Education Councils of major state universities.
These suggestions given for improvement
Quality will have to be focused on improvement to improve education. For this, there is a need to bring research policy at the national level. A cluster of the Center of Excellence should be created to solve the local level challenges. Education quality should be evaluated at the level of the semester. Digital platforms should be used for better students to learn better. Agreements should be made with foreign universities for changes coming in the education sector and new information, so that students and teachers can help in updated.
An agency should be set up at the state level that can provide the funds required to the state universities to improve the quality of higher education. The state university should be provided tax -related discounts for education and research. They should periodically review the commercial rates of other public facilities including water, electricity. CSR funds should be promoted to improve the buildings, research and other public facilities of state schools.
Roadmap should be prepared keeping in mind the target of 2047 for higher education at the state level. Ensuring transparency and accountability, the administrative autonomy of state universities should be promoted. Major changes should be made to make the university related recognition and other process transparent and easy. Better coordination should be established between the Department of Higher and Technical Education of the states.
Employment opportunities for youth should be rapid, to promote internships and apprenticeship from university level. Entrepreneurship and innovation should be encouraged. Such students should be promoted who are excited to generate employment. The university should design courses that help in providing employment opportunities. The university should integrate physical education, sports and welfare programs.
