MEMORANDUM ON ITEM NO. V TO CONSIDER THE REPORT OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE CENTRAL ADVISORY BOARD OF EDUCATION ON HIGHER EDUCATION
The Standing Committee of the Board on Higher Education met in New Delhi on 6th and 7th August, 1965, to consider matters per- taining to higher education. The minutes of the report of the Com- mittee are as follows :
The recommendations made by the Committee were placed be- fore the Board for consideration.
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE
OF THE C.A.B.E. ON HIGHER EDUCATION HELD IN NEW
DELHI ON 6TH AND 7TH AUGUST, 1965 A meeting of the Standing Committee on Higher Education of the Central Advisory Board of Education, was held on 6th and 7th August, 1965 in Committee Room `E', Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi, to consider certain important current issues in the field of higher education, which could be included in the agenda for the forthcom- ing 32nd Session of the Central Advisory Board of Education pro- posed to be held sometime in October, 1965.
The following were present:
(a) Members:
(1) Dr. Probodh Chandra
Minister for Education, Punjab
(2) Dr. V. K. R. V. Rao
Member, Planning Commission
(3) Dr. D. S. Kothari
Chairman
University Grants Commission
New Delhi
(4) Dr. K. D. Pande
Deputy Minister for Education, U.P.
(5) Shri A. S. Kankeyan
Education Minister, Pondicherry
(6) Shri S. P. Mukherjee
Chief Commissioner, Tripura
(7) Shri N. E. S. Raghavachari
Adviser to the Governor of Kerala
(8) Dr. P. Parija
Vice-Chancellor
Utkal University
(9) Shri N. Bhagwan Dass
Education Secretary, Andhra Pradesh
(10) Shri S. K. Mukherjee
Deputy Agricultural Commissioner
I.C.A.R., New Delhi
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(b) Special Invitees :
(11) Dr. C. D. Deshmukh
Vice-Chancellor
University of Delhi
(12) Dr. A. C. Joshi
Adviser
Planning Commission
(13) Dr. V. S. Jha
Member
Education Commission
(14) Shri K. L. Joshi
Secretary
University Grants Commission
New Delhi
(15) Dr. P. J. Phillip
Joint Secretary
University Grants Commission
New Delhi
(16) Dr. Amrik Singh
Secretary
Inter-University Board of India
New Delhi
(17) Shri J. L. Azad
Deputy Chief (Education)
Planning Commission, New Delhi
(18) Dr. M. S. Mehta
Vice-Chancellor,
Rajasthan University
Jaipur
Dr. Probodh Chandra, Minister for Education, Punjab, was selected by the members of the Standing Committee as the Chair- man of the Committee.
Shri D. K. Hingorani, Deputy Educational Adviser, Ministry of Education, acted as Secretary to the Committee.
2. After a general discussion on the scope of the work and the functions of the Standing Committee, the Committee proceeded to consider the various items of the agenda ad seriatim:
Item No. 1: Report of the Committee of the Members of Parlia-
ment on Higher Education. The Committee considered various recommendations of the Committee of Members of Parliament on Higher Education under the chairmanship of Shri P. N. Sapru and expressed their general agreement with them, except with the item relating to the higher education being made a concurrent subject on which the opinion was divided.
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Item No. 2: Report of the Committee an Model Act for Universi-
ties. The Committee broadly endorsed the recommendations of the Model Act for Universities Committee and recommended that the Central Government and the State Governments should generally follow the lines indicated in the Report in enacting university legis- lation in their jurisdictions.
Item No. 3: Promotion of Higher Education through Evening Col-
leges. The Committee discussed at length the role and the scope of the evening colleges in the developing system of education in the country where there was increasing pressure of admissions on the part of regular day students as well as employees. It was generally agreed that diversification of education achieved so far at the se- condary level had not produced any appreciable impact on the number of students seeking admission to arts/science courses at the under-graduate level with the result that the demand for ad- missions was increasing at a tremendous pace. This pressure for admissions had led to a haphazard growth of a large number of "sub-standard" colleges without adequate provision of buildings, libraries, laboratories etc. on the other hand, it was observed that the limited number of colleges, where there was adequate provision of buildings, libraries, laboratories and other facilities, were not being fully utilized on account of restricted working hours.
Keeping in view these aspects of the problem of increasing pressure of admissions on the day colleges, the Committee made the following recommendations:
(a) Promotion of higher education through evening colleges should be encouraged as much as possible with a view to meeting the educational requirements of as many emplo- yees as possible;
(b) The concept of evening colleges may be broadened so as to meet the requirements of the increasing number of re- gular students as well. For this purpose, it would be necessary to extend the college timings so that each college with suitable buildings and necessary educational facilities should have about 10 working hours in a single or a double shift as may be feasible in the light of the local conditions. Such arrangements will not only go a long way to solv- ing the problem of increasing demand for admissions to colleges, but will also facilitate the maximum utilization of the existing buildings, libraries, laboratories and other phy- sical and educational facilities;
(c) In the colleges where the working hours are extended to whole afternoon as recommended above, the evening classes for employees should not be added as far as possible;
(d) It will be desirable, as far as possible, not to mix employees with regular students in the same class in view of the wide disparity, in their ages;
(e) There should be separate provision of teaching staff for each shift in the day colleges and for the evening colleges.
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Item No. 4: Promotion of Higher Education through Correspon-
dence Courses. The Committee considered the question of promoting higher education through correspondence courses in the light of the ex- perience of the Delhi University in organising correspondence courses for the B.A. (Pass) Degree with effect from September 1962 and in the context of the recommendations of the Expert Commit- tee set up, under the chairmanship of Dr. D. S. Kothari, to work out the pattern of correspondence courses in India. The Commit- tee noted the proposals of the Ministry of Education to extend, during the Fourth Plan, the scheme of correspondence courses to (a) more centres in the country; (b) B.Sc. (Pass) Degree, and (c) post-graduate Degrees in Arts, and (d) teacher training. In this connection the Committee was informed by the Vice-Chancellor, Delhi University, that the University was examining the feasibility of extending correspondence courses to the B.Sc. (Pass) degree and post-graduate degrees in arts during the Fourth Plan period.
The Committee made the following recommendations:
(a) The possibility of starting correspondence courses in arts at the under-graduate level in 3 or 4 other universities in accordance with the regional linguistic requirements, may be explored, so that such centres can be set up from the beginning of the Fourth Plan;
(b) Efforts may also be made to extend correspondence cour- ses to cover science subjects at the undergraduate level and post-graduate subjects in arts after working out care- fully the organisational requirements for such purposes.
(c) A seminar or a working group may be organized by the Delhi University, where the correspondence course has been implemented, in which educationists, to be entrusted with organization of similar courses in other universities in the country may be invited to participate and share the ideas and the experience of the Delhi University in this impor- tant field;
(d) Selected educationists from 3 or 4 other universities where correspondence courses are proposed to be started in the Fourth Plan may be sent abroad for intensive training in the implementation of such schemes;
(e) In order to meet the shortage of teachers for agricultural schools, the possibility of starting correspondence courses for such teachers in the agricultural university may be explored;
(f) The duration of the correspondence courses should gene- rally be one year longer than that of the regular institu- tion courses;
(g) The various media of mass communication, particularly the radio, should be geared to extending and enriching the contents of the correspondence courses at all levels; and
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(h) The students enrolling for correspondence courses should be encouraged to avail themselves of suitable library facili- ties in neighbouring colleges and universities.
Item No. 5: Tentative proposals for Higher Education in the Fourth
Five Year Plan. The Committee discussed at length the question of adequacy or otherwise of the proposed allocation for higher education in the Fourth Plan. The Planning Commission had tentatively agreed to an amount of Rs. 189 crores for the programmes in the field of higher education, including Rs. 55 crores for scholarships and fellowships, during the Fourth Plan. The representative of the Planning Commission at the meeting explained that this estimate was based on an anticipated enrolment of 5 lakhs, which could be reduced if a policy of restrictive admissions to colleges was adopted in the country. The representative of the U.G.C. present at the meeting argued that the anticipated enrolment of students as well as estimated per capita expenditure, on the basis of which the Plan provision had been worked out, were both on the low side. He also stated that certain essential programmes like post- graduate education, hostels and staff quarters etc. had been under- provided in the estimates of the Planning Commission.
2. The consensus of opinion of the Committee was that the proposed allocation for higher education in the Fourth Plan ap- peared to be inadequate from the points of view of both expansion as well as qualitative improvement in the field of higher education. The Committee, therefore, recommended that efforts may be made to increase the proposed Plan provision for higher education by Rs. 40 to 50 crores.
Item No. 6: Implementation and development of the programme
of education in international understanding in further-
ance of East-West Major Project and Associated
Schools Project of Unesco. The Committee recommended that the programme of educa- tion in international understanding which has already been under- taken in India in secondary schools and teacher training institu- tions in furtherance of the East-West Major Project and Associated Schools Project of Unesco, be endorsed and details of extending the programme of activities to the university level may be worked out in consultation with the universities which have had some ex- perience of Unesco, research programmes under the guidance of the Indian National Commission for Cooperation with Unesco.
Item No. 7: Problems created by the increasing rush of students
for admission to colleges. The Committee considered at length the problems created by the increasing rush of students for admission to colleges in all parts of the country. The number of admissions to colleges is rapidly mounting every year without commensurate increase in the staff accommodation, laboratory equipment and library facilities. Under these conditions, the standards of college education are fast declining. The work load of the staff is so much that they do not
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have any time or leisure for contacts with students. Altogether, the impact of college education on the intellectual and character development of students is rapidly dwindling. One of the serious by-products of the all-round deterioration in college education is the growing tendency of indiscipline on the part of the students.
2. The Committee made the following recommendations with a view to arresting the vicious circle of the rush of admissions and the declining standards of college education in the country:
(a) The universities and colleges should impose some restric- tions on admissions so that only students of calibre can join them,;
(b) It may also be desirable to introduce aptitude tests for selecting students to various courses of under-graduate studies;
(c) All the students who conform to the admission require- ments should be provided with necessary educational faci- lities by expansion, where essential, but more by fuller uti- lisation of the existing colleges;
(d) Efforts should be made to lay down restrictions on the number of students to be admitted to each college and also standards regarding the teacher-pupil ratio so as to provide better education for deserving students;
(e) The students who are excluded from admission to regular institutional education may be provided with some other suitable education opportunities such as correspondence courses.
Item No. 8: Separate education for boys and girls in schools and
colleges. The Committee considered the various aspects of the question of providing separate schools and colleges for girls. The view was expressed that mixed institutions, because of the innate self con- ciousness, sex consciousness, and sense of inhibition on the part of girls, are not conducive to the full development of their talents. The Committee, however, recommended that though there was no objection to separate schools and colleges for girls, the present sys- tem of co-education, wherever it existed should continue.
Item No. 9: Pattern of Central assistance in the Fourth Five Year
Plan. The view was expressed that though planning for the Fourth Five Year Plan had been going on for the last two years, no clear- cut decision had so far been taken as to the pattern of the Central assistance in the field of higher education during the coming Plan period. It was emphasised that the lack of decision in this respect had made most of the efforts at planning in the State Sector un- realistic. It, therefore, recommended that the Ministry of Education and the Planning Commission should expedite decision about the pattern of assistance for various State programmes so as to help the State Governments in finalising their proposals for the Fourth Plan.
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Item No. 10: Setting up of new universities. The question of setting up new universities by the State Gov- ernments during the Fourth Plan was briefly considered at the end of the meeting. It was pointed out that the Planning Commission had suggested to the State Governments that no new university should be established in the Fourth Plan unless they were fully justified on purely academic grounds. It was also mentioned that the Commission had instead recommended that university centres, each within a complex of colleges with 10,000 enrolment may be set up. Such centres may provide facilities of university standard in terms of facilities of library, laboratories and teaching staff. In course of time, these centres could be developed into universities.