APPENDIX `D' AGENDA PAPERS OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE CENTRAL ADVISORY BOARD OF EDUCATION ON GENERAL PURPOSES
August 6 and 7, 1965
Vigyan Bhawan at 10.30 A.M.
ITEMS OF AGENDA
1. Report on the Educational Information Service of the Minis try of Education (Annexure XXIII).
2. Scheme of National Scholarships (Annexure XXIV).
3. Publications, Periodicals and other Journals brought out by the Ministry of Education (Annexure XXV).
4. Pattern -of Central assistance in the Fourth Five Year Plan (Annexure XXVI).
5. Training of Instructors for the Integrated Programme of Physical Education. (Annexure XXVII).
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ANNEXURE XXIII
Memorandum on `Report on the Educational Information Service of the
Ministry of Education' The following report on the Educational Information Service of the Ministry of Education is for the information of the members of the C.A.B.E.
The Information Section being a part of the Bureau of Planning and Ancillary Educational Services in the Ministry of Education acts as a `Clearing House' for various kinds of information pertaining to education. The main functions discharged by it are as under:
(i) To collect, compile and disseminate information relating to facilities for higher education in India and abroad;
(ii) To compile in advance informative material on various sub- jects viz., science, humanities, social sciences, commerce, etc. on which most of the enquiries are received;
(iii) To maintain an up-to-date information library of prospectuses, calendars, syllabi, codes, Statutes, ordinances, Acts, Regulations etc. of various institutions in India and abroad.
(iv) To render advice to students regarding courses and careers for vocations or training after graduate/post-graduate stage ;
(v) To advise various departments/Ministries of Govt. of India with regard to their officers going abroad for advanced study/training and certifying whether or not equivalent courses are available in India ; and
(vi) To bring out every quarter a publication entitled `Educa- tional Facilities in India and Abroad' with emphasis on information as is frequently required by the students desirous of receiving further education or training or which may be of substantial and permanent reference value to Students Advisory Bureaux attached to the Indian universities. (Recently production of a series of pamphlets giving information on facilities for higher education in, India in different branches of study has been started with a view to inform the prospective students about the initial information that they would require before applying for certain courses).
(I) Informative Material Every year the Information Unit takes up compilation/revision of informative material on scores of educational subjects. The sub- jects of compilations are determined by the nature of enquiries which number more than 13,000 every year and cover almost all facets of education relating to further education or training. The
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information contained in them generally covers the following aspects :
(i) Name and Address of the University/Institution (ii) Title of the degree/diploma awarded
(iii) Minimum qualifications for admission
(iv) Duration of the course (v) Tuition and other fees charged; and
(vi) Any other relevant information.
If the required information is not readily available in the Sec- tion the institutions/universities concerned are approached to supply the same. For collection of information from abroad, our Missions are utilised to procure the requisite literature/material for our use. Normally prospectuses/syllabi/calendars/handbooks of universities/colleges and other educational institutions both in India and abroad are supplied to us as complimentary copies. But provision also exists to purchase those priced publications which are otherwise not available.
(II) Information Library Information Library attached to the Information Unit is stocked with an up-to-date collection of the latest editions of literature pertaining to Indian and foreign universities/institutions in the form of prospectus/syllabus/code/act/calendar/ordinance/statute/hand- book/courses of study, etc. This literature is meant for consultation and reference by the staff members as well as those persons who per- sonally call in the Library. The said literature is replaced every year by more up-to-date material.
Information Display Boards form an important part of the In- formation Library where day-to-day information regarding educational news and views, advertisements of short courses organised by various institutions, new institutions opened or new courses introduced is displayed.
(III) Counselling Counselling of the students regarding selection of courses and careers for specific vocations or training after higher secondary/ graduate/post graduate stage is done in the Information Library by the technical staff who are conversant with the technique of collection and dissemination of educational information.
(IV) Advising various Departments/Ministries with regard to
Facilities for Higher Studies in India The cases of those government officials, who wish to go abroad for higher study/training in various fields of education in order to improve their qualifications, are invariably referred to the Informa- tion Section for certification by their departments whether alterna- tive facilities exist in India.
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(V) Journal-`Educational Facilities in India and Abroad' The Journal entitled "Educational Facilities in India and Abroad" which the Ministry brings out, every quarter is a modest attempt at providing students through Students Advisory Bureaux, or universities where these Bureaux are not functioning, with information in the field of higher study in India and Abroad. More and more students are now planning for higher study and are in need of information regarding courses and institutions of higher learning, living conditions abroad, fellowships/scholarships and other educa- tional information of general interest. The material documented in this publication is directed to serve this need. A special Section of the publication relates to new courses which are introduced from time to time in the Indian and foreign universities and other educational institutions. Its circulation is restricted to the Students Advisory Bureaux, Registrars of Indian Universities and Directorates of Education in States and Union Territories in the country.
Besides the above journal, the Information Section has undertaken to publish a series of small pamphlets giving information on facilities for higher education in India in specific branches of study with a view to inform the prospective students about the initial in- formation that they would require before applying for a certain course of study. These pamphlets generally contain the names of the institutions where the facilities exist, duration of the course, age limit, qualifications for admission, fee for application form, date of submission of applications, etc. They contain a number of notes on the future prospects in a particular subject. The compilations so far done are in respect of :
(i) Medical colleges offering first degree courses in India
(ii) Courses in business administration, industrial management & Engineering Management; and
(iii) Architecture in India.
This series will gradually cover other subjects on engineering, agriculture, humanities and social sciences on which most of the enquiries are received.
(VI) Students Advisory Bureaux The Information Section has helped the establishment of Students Advisory Bureaux in various universities and State Governments. The Bureaux are to give advice, guidance and information to the students of their own university. They are also required to screen and scrutinise applications of the students of their institutions who wish to proceed abroad for study/training at their own expense.
The Information Section of the Ministry of Education coordinates the work of these Bureaux, supplies them with informative material, and gives them guidance for their, effective functioning.
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With this purpose in view a National Seminar of the Students Advisory Bureaux in the country was held in Calcutta in February, 1965 under the sponsorship of the Information Section. This Seminar recommended a number of measures to be taken in regard to the improvement of work done by the Students Advisory Bureaux and the Information Section. It also suggested various items of compilations to be done and published in the Journal `Educational Facilities in India and Abroad' for the use of the Students Advisory Bureaux in every quarter extending upto two years of its publication. It further recommended that the Universities which are not yet having such Students Advisory Bureaux should take immediate steps for their establishment. These recommendations are being pursued for implementation.
ANNEXURE XXIV
SCHEME OF NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS (Ministry of Education)
The Union Ministry of Education handles a large number of schemes of scholarships. Two of these the National (Grant) Scholarships Scheme and the National Loan Scholarships Scheme are at present implemented through the State Governments, Universities and Colleges. This note is confined to these two Schemes.
2. The National (Grant) Scholarships Scheme has been in ope- ration since 1961-62. The Third Plan expenditure on this Scheme is estimated to be Rs. 256 lakhs as against the Plan provision of Rs. 308 lakhs. Under this Scheme, 2650 fresh awards for post-matriculation studies are made every year. The awards are announced by the Ministry on receipt of merit lists from the various examination authorities and after that the operation of these awards, including payments, is handled by the State Governments.
3. While approving the National Scholarships Scheme, the Union Cabinet directed that a loan Scheme may also be started. Accordingly, the National Loan Scholarships Scheme was put into operation from 1963-64 to cover bright students who could not be accommodated under the National (Grant) Scholarships Scheme. In the first year all the 18,100 awards proposed to be made could not be utilised fully, because there was lack of adequate publicity. In 1964-65, the number of the utilised awards is exceeding the figure 16,000.
In the current year (1965-66), the number has been raised to 26,500 and all these may be utilised. The selection and announcement of the awards under this scheme is done by the State Governments, Boards of Secondary Education and the universities, etc., within the terms and conditions of the Scheme.
4. Thus it may be stated that during the third Plan, about 51,000 fresh scholarships have been allotted during the first four years and another 29,100 fresh awards will be made in the 5th year, bringing the total number of fresh awards during the Plan to 80,100. In terms of financial outlay, nearly Rs. 12 crores. would have been spent during the Plan on these two schemes of national scholarships.
5. The coverage at the end of the Third Plan under both schemes would be limited to about 25% of the 1st class students and less than 2% of those passing various examinations at the school leaving and university stages. In the fourth Plan, it is proposed to cover a much larger percentage of the eligible students and tentatively 50,000 additional awards for each year have been suggested. Of these, 17,000 may be under the National (Grant) Scholarships Scheme and 33,000 under the National Loan Scholarships Scheme.
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6. Both these schemes are of great national significance as they contribute to raise the general standard of education and to democratize the educational facilities. Their working during the past few years has, however, revealed a number of weaknesses. some of which are indicated below:
(i) The number of available scholarships is too small as compared to the number of eligible students.
(ii) The terms and conditions of the scheme create hardship for some categories of students.
(iii) The announcement of the award of scholarships is done rather late.
(iv) The payment of the scholarships money is delayed.
(v) The decision on the renewal of scholarships is not done in time.
(vi) The `Means Test' is not desirable when the scholarships are made only on the basis of merit of the students.
These difficulties have recently been examined in detail and to remove them several measures have been taken or are being taken.
7. The size of the scheme is proposed to be enlarged in the Fourth Plan as is indicated in para 5 above. The terms and conditions of the scheme of National Loan Scholarships have recently been revised and the revised scheme has been introduced from the academic session 1964-65 itself. All the State Governments were requested to review all hard cases which were pending and others due for consideration under the revised terms of the scheme. The National Scholarships (Grant) scheme has also been revised similarly. The terms and conditions of the revised schemes will also facilitate decisions on the renewal of the scholarships.
8. From the academic session 1965-66, an entitlement card is being issued to each awarder of the scholarships. On the presentation of this card, the scholar would be admitted in, the institution of his choice, if he is otherwise due for the admission, without payment of admission and deposit and advance tuition fees. The latter can be deducted from the first instalment of the scholarships money which is to be received from the Government.
9. The remaining matters pertaining to the complaints are de- pendent on an amendment in the application of the- "Means Test" and improvement in the procedural and administrative machinery. The time consuming scrutiny to find the parents' income through the Tehsil or the Taluka authorities in each case has been given up and an affidavit from the parents stating their income is now being accepted for the award of the scholarship. The existing procedures relating to the payment of the scholarship money have also been studied and simpler and quicker methods have been introduced with effect from 1965-66 in consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. This provides for advance release by the Government of India of the yearly amount to the State Governments who would advance it in two instalments of 9 months and 3 months in favour of the head of the institutions concerned. The
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money will be placed in a deposit account to be operated upon by the Head of the Institution. The payment to the scholars would then be ensured in the beginning of every month.
10. The success of the revised procedures, depends on the ad- ministrative machinery to operate them. The existing machinery in the States and Territories has been reported to be rather inadequate to cope with the present work, nothing to say of the bigger schemes to be launched during the Fourth Plan. In several States, there has been no officer or establishment exclusively working on the implementation of these schemes. The creation of a central autonomous organization for the schemes of National Scholarships is not considered to be necessary at this stage. The existing Regional Officers of the Ministry looking after technical education alone are too few and too small to be given the additional work of the scholarships. The administrative machinery for the operation of these schemes has, therefore, to be reorganized and strengthened to do the present work efficiently and to cope with the requirements of the Fourth Plan in a bigger way. What should be the most appropriate agency to implement the scheme and what is the extent to which strengthening is called for in the existing administrative machinery are matters to be considered.