Mumbai: Stressing for collaborations in the
field of education, Union Human Resources Development Minister
Kapil Sibal on Saturday said he had set a target of 30 per cent
students reaching university level in India by 2020.
"The current rate is only 12.4 per cent. Presently, there
are 500 universities and about 25,000 colleges in the country.
We need another 800 universities and 35,000-40,000 colleges to
enable more 46 million children to avail college education,"
Sibal said while inaugurating Indo-US summit on higher
education.
He said 220 million children go to school in India out of
which only 14 million reach college.
"Our economy cannot sustain with such numbers. Out of the
numbers which manage to reach the college, only 40 per cent
pass 12 standard," he said at the event organised by the
Indo-American Society.
Pressing for joint ventures in education field, Sibal
said the country cannot move forward in a fragmented manner in
this field.
"Even with expansion, only 60 million children will be
able to go to colleges and universities. What about the rest,
we need to empower them. Expansion and inclusion without
quality is also of no use," he said.
Sibal said the government will soon introduce a national
vocational education framework at the 10+2 level to create
courses providing employment opportunities. State governments
will be asked to identify and devise these courses, standards
of which will be decided at the national level.
"Vocational training and academics need to be
synergised," he said and asked educationists to think
differently.
"Different economic models and educational collaborations
will bring energy into the system. A good system is built on
foundation of ideas and the need of the hour was to invest in
the human mind," the minister noted.
He felt that if the output is better, India will be more
competitive in the field of education. "It is said that
100,000 students to the US to pursue higher education. But, in
the US there are about 75,000 engineers whereas there are
65,000 in Bangalore alone," Sibal said.
The minister said syllabus and methodology should be left
to the teachers and universities must be allowed to chose
their curriculum.
PTI
