Centre moots special grant for ‘performing’ state universities
LUCKNOW: In a bid to improve the standard of higher education in the country, the union government has decided to reward performance oriented state-run colleges and universities with special grants.
The human resource development ministry (MHRD) will launch Rashtriya Ucchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) to implement the move. As per the existing system, only central universities get funds. “The expenditure finance committee (EFC) has given its nod to RUSA. Now we will bring it in cabinet,” MM Pallam Raju, union HRD minister told newsmen here during a visit to Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) on Friday. The minister said the idea was to give impetus to higher education.
“We will monitor the state-run colleges and universities and release grants to them accordingly. A sum of Rs 500 crore have been sanctioned for this year while another Rs 25000 crore would be released for the next five years under the 12th five year plan,” Raju added. He laid the foundation stone of Ambedkar Bhawan, declared the new academic session open and also interacted with deans of faculties of the university.
To achieve this, experts said, an amendment to the UGC Act may be needed so as to bring the targeted 20,000 government and government-aided colleges as against the present 6,811 colleges under Section 12(B) of the Act and make them eligible for funding by the UGC-the higher education regulatory body.
The minister also expressed concern over the poor standards of education, especially research, being imparted in higher education institutions barring IIMs and IITs. He was referring to the recent global ranking in which no university from the country could find a place in the list of 200 best institutions of higher learning.
“We need to aim high and improve upon the kind of research being imparted in universities. The focus has to be on the kind of publications in which research papers are published. This is one of the important pre requisite for competing globally,” Raju added.
COMMISSION TO PROMOTE SANSKRIT IN THE OFFING
Union HRD minister MM Pallamraju on Friday announced the formation of second commission for Sanskrit. He said moves were afoot to promote the language.
Addressing the three-day national conference on Sanskrit language here, Pallamraju laid stress on simplification of the language so that it could be popularized on a wider scale. Pointing out that the language had played significant role in development of world civilization, the minister said the survival of the language was necessary to keep the human values alive and it should be developed in proper scientific manner. He said the world was looking towards India for values in life and the role of Sanskrit teachers had become important.