ACTIVITIES IN COMMON AND CLEARING HOUSE FUNCTIONS
This chapter gives an account of the various activities under- taken by the Ministry, not covered by the earlier ones. These activities include policy formulation, development planning, budgeting, encouragement to the progressive use of Hindi, reservation of posts in the services for Scheduled Castes/Tribes and other backward classes, and student welfare measures. Some of them pertain to the Departments of Education and Culture in common.
Also included in this chapter is an account of the clearing house functions followed during the year. One of the important functions of the Union Ministry of Education is to act as a clearing house of information on all matters relating to educational development. The Ministry, accordingly, collects, compiles and publishes educational statistics, brings out Journals and other published material on education and culture in Hindi and English. A Students Information Service Unit in the Ministry attends to enquiries about facilities for higher education in this country and abroad.
National Policy on Education The Ministry prepared a draft of the "National Policy on Education, 1979". This was placed before Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on 30th April, 1979 and 2nd May, 1979 respectively.
Scheme of Assistance for Study Projects in Educational Policy,
Planning and Administration The Ministry has framed a new scheme of assistance to organisations and State Education Departments to enable them to undertake studies of problems connected with the implementation of educational policies, programmes and plans, with emphasis on studies in the areas of planning and management of educational systems.
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A Conference of Ministers of States/Union Territories in charge of Art and Culture was held on July 2-3, 1979 at New Delhi. It considered the following items :-
I. Review of the institutional infrastructure in different States/Union Territories to deal with matters relating to cultural heritage and arts.
II. Cultural content in education.
III. Review of financial resources, whether budgetary (Plan and non-plan) or non-budgetary for pursuit of activities in these fields.
IV. Report of the Working Group on Art and Culture.
V. A programme of action for preservation of cultural heritage, particularly of rural and tribal communities, and promotion of cultural activities.
VI. Inter-State cooperation and exchanges.
VII. The need for a Cultural Policy.
The Conference noted that many states, have Departments of Culture and urged other state governments to establish similar departments in their respective states which would be administratively responsible for the fields of Archaeology, Archives, Museums, Akademies, for the promotion of Plastic and Literary Arts, Libraries, and for non-official and autonomous bodies and institutions devoted to the preservation and promotion of folk and tribal arts and culture of India. The Conference felt it would be advisable for each state to undertake a periodic review of the administrative and financial infrastructure of cultural activities.
The Conference welcomed the steps which have been taken by the NCERT and some states for bringing out the revision in the curricula and preparing text-books with Indian cultural subjects and ideas in them. The Conference also welcomed the steps taken by the NCERT regarding the decentralisation of curricula under their project aided by UNICEF. It recommended that all states should participate in this programme. It also recommended that the State Institutes of Education should take steps to develop curricula which would respond to the local specific ecological, social and cultural environment of the learner,
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The Conference recommended that the goals of secularism, national integration and egalitarian society can be achieved only through proper understanding of the different strands of composite Indian culture and the common principles that hold together the diversity of linguistic and cultural units. The Conference was of the view that the cultural content should be woven into the curricula at all levels of education, particularly at the elementary and at the secondary stage.
The Conference also considered the report of the Working Group on Art and Culture and the Report of the Committee on Linkage between Education and Culture and endorsed the recommendations contained therein.
The Conference discussed the several problems relating to the preservation and fostering of the different facets of Indian culture at the rural and tribal levels. The Conference Voiced the need for immediate action for preserving, documenting these aspects of rural and tribal cultural traditions which are in danger of extinction, particularly our heritage which has so far been sustained through oral communication.
ACTIVITIES IN COMMON
Budget Estimates--Department of Education The total budget provisions for 1979-80 and 1980-81 in respect of this Department are as under :-
(Plan and Non-Plan) (Rs. in thousands)
Budget Revised Budget
Particulars Estimates Estimates Estimates
1979-80 1979-80 1980-81
1 2 3 4
Demand No. 25/26*
Department of Education:
Secretariat of the Depa- 190,89 184,74 194,94
rtment including the Pay
and accounts offices,
hospitality and enter-
tainment.
*for 1980-81
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1 2 3 4
Demand No. 26/27*
Education :
Provision for general Education, 226,48,68 213,54,98 235,32,41
other revenue expenditure of the
Department including provisions
for grants-in-aid to States/Union
Territories on Central and Centra-
lly Sponsored Schemes and also Pr-
ovision for loans for construction
of hostels, etc. and other educat-
ional loans for Central and Centr-
ally Sponsored Schemes.
Budget Estimates-Department of Culture The budget provisions for 1979-80 and 1980-81 for the Department of Culture are as under :
(Plan and Non-Plan) (Rs. in thousands)
Budget Revised Budget
Particulars Estimates Estimates Estimates
1979-80 1979-80 1980-81
1 2 3 4
Demand No. 27/28*
Department of Culture 11,91,21 10,73,89 11,80,35
Demand No. 28/29*
Archaeology 6,96,48 6,81,50 6,89,00
Audit Observations and Inspection Reports In accordance with the recommendations made by the Public Accounts Committee in its 215th Report on the action taken by Government on the Recommendations of the P.A.C. contained
*for 1980-81
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in their 169th Report (5th Lok Sabha), the Ministry continued its concerted efforts to clear the outstanding audit observations and inspection paras. Instructions were issued by Education Secretary to all subordinate formations for speedy clearance of outstanding audit observations and inspection paras and asked for quarterly progress reports indicating their state of disposal. As against 3,897 audit observations made up to March 1978 but outstanding on 31st August, 1978 and 3,625 inspection paras which were included in the Comptroller and Auditor General's Report for the year 1977-78, the Ministry cleared 1,542 audit observations and 1,532 inspection paras till 31st March, 1978. Efforts are being continued to clear the remaining outstanding observations and paras.
Observance of Orders Regarding Reservation in Posts and Services
for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled, Tribes A special cell functions in the Ministry to advise and assist the appointing authorities in, the Departments of Education and Culture in the implementation of the Government of India decisions in regard to the reservation of posts for members belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes communities in different cadres controlled by these Departments. The activities of this cell are at present carried out in three units under supervision of the concerned Deputy Secretaries in charge of Establishment/Administration. Certain proposals are under consideration for rationalising the structure and functioning of the cell in order to make it an effective instrument for the services which it is expected to perform.
Annual statements prescribed by the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms regarding the representation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in posts and services which were received from the administrative units in the Department of Education and its attached and Subordinate offices were scrutinized by the cell and consolidated material was furnished to the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms.
During the year under report, special rosters pertaining to the following categories- of posts in the Departments of Education and Culture (proper) were inspected to verify whether these have been maintained in accordance with the reservation orders issued by Government from time to time :-
(1) Technical Advisory Cadre (Class I & II posts)
(2) General Advisory Cadre (Class I & II posts)
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(3) Direct recruitment in Group III posts
(4) Posts filled by promotion to the grade of Assistant
(5) Posts filled by promotion in the grade of Upper Division Clerk ;
(6) Appointments to the posts of Lower Division, Clerks (Permanent and Temporary) ;
(7) Personal Assistants Grade II, and Stenographers Grade III ;
(8) Class III maintenance posts
(9) Class IV posts ; and
(10) Compilers, Librarians Grade I, Librarians Grade II, Librarians Grade III and Librarian Selection Grade, Library Attendants.
Action to call for inspection reports in respect of the rosters which are required to be maintained by the Heads of subordinate offices of this department was also initiated. Action has also been taken to collect up-to-date information regarding the filling up of vacancies reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes by the members belonging to these communities in the statutory organisations and autonomous bodies with which this department is directly concerned.
Progressive Use of Hindi The Ministry regularly circulates to its officers and the various sections under its control, in addition to its attached and subordi- nate offices, the administrative instructions issued by the Government regarding the full implementation of the official language policy and the statutory requirements relating to it. A regular watch on the progress of all the programmes in, this regard is also kept.
Quarterly Progress Report Progress in 1979-80 was watched and reviewed, inter alia, through quarterly progress reports obtained from the various Divisions and the attached and subordinate offices under the control of this Ministry. These reports were scrutinized, consolidated, and sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Official Language).
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Correspondence in Hindi Letters received in Hindi from individuals as well as from State Governments are replied to in Hindi.
Issue of Bilingual Circulars in Hindi Circulars meant for general information are issued bilingually.
Noting and Drafting in Hindi According to the bilingual policy, every Central Government employee is free to use Hindi or English for his official work. However, all the officers and staff in the Ministry and its attached and subordinate offices are requested from time to time to encourage their Hindi knowing staff to increase the use of Hindi for their notes and simple drafts. About 72.5 per cent of the staff of the department has working knowledge of Hindi and Hindi is being partially used in noting and drafting in 39 sections.
Provision of Additional Hindi Typewriters At present 53 Hindi typewriters are available in the Ministry.
Translation of Statutory Manuals, Forms and Other Procedure
Literature. So far, 187 forms and manuals of this Ministry have been translated into Hindi.
Translation of Acts and Statutes The work relating to translation of Acts and Statutes has been completed.
Maintenance of Separate Registers for Letters Received in Hindi All sections in the Ministry maintain separate diary registers for letters received in Hindi and specific entries are made about the replies sent in Hindi. Where replies are not sent in Hindi or are not considered necessary, suitable explanation is given by the Section concerned.
Training of Employees in Hindi On a review made recently about the officers and members of the staff who either had Hindi as a subject in their higher
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secondary examination or had passed Pragya examination conducted by the Ministry of Home Affairs, it was found that approximately 73% officers and staff belong to these two categories and have a working knowledge of Hindi. Besides, 34 persons were deputed for the various Hindi teaching classes. Eight persons were deputed for training in Hindi typewriting and Hindi stenography.
Workshops Workshops are being conducted to impart training to Hindi-knowing employees of this Department in noting and drafting in Hindi.
Official Language Implementation Committee Official Language Implementation Committees have been set up in the Ministry and in five of its, subordinate offices. These Committees held quarterly meetings to review the progress of use of Hindi for official purposes at these meetings. The minutes of the meetings are set to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Department of Official Language for information. It has not been considered necessary to set up such committees in other subordinate offices, whose total staff strength is very small.
Hindi Salahkar Samiti A Hindi Salahkar Samiti has been, set up for the Ministry under the Chairmanship of Union Education Minister, to advise the Ministry on matters relating to the progressive use of Hindi for official purposes.
Supply of White Printing Paper at Concessional Rate for Production
of Textbooks, Exercise books and Examinations The scheme for allocation of white printing paper at a con- cessional rate, has been continued during the year under report. The ex-mill price of paper has since been increased from Rs. 2,750 to Rs. 3,000 per tonne with effect from 30-6-1979 by an, order issued by the Central Government. On account of lesser production of paper by the mills owing to shortage of power and water, non-availability of railway wagons, etc. only 1,52,000 tonnes of paper could be allotted during the year 1979-80 to States and Union Territories. Exercise books which have been declared as an essential commodity continued to be made
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available at the rates fixed in January 1976. In addition to the, normal outlets, the distribution of exercise books through the public distribution system was introduced from 1-7-79. At the instance of the Ministry, many of the States have adopted distribution of exercise books through fair price shops to ensure their availability in rural areas.
Import of Paper from Norway Under the bilateral agreement with the Government of Norway, commodity assistance worth 10 million Kroners of paper is being expected. The paper is earmarked for the production of school textbooks by the NCERT.
CLEARING HOUSE FUNCTIONS
(a) Statistics
(i) Seventh All India Conference on Educational Statistics