V. WRITTEN SPEECHES OF EDUCATION
MINISTERS OF STATES/UTS.
 

i) Arunachal Pradesh

Shri R.K. Khirmey, Minister, Education, Science and Technology.

ii) ASSAM

Smt. Bhumi Dhar Barman, Minister, Education

iii) KARNATAKA

Shri M. Veerappa Moily, Minister of Education.

iv) MAHARASHTRA

Shri Anant Rao Thopte, Minister, Education and Technical Education.

V) MEGHALAYA

Shri P.G. Momin, Minister, Education.

vi) ORISSA

Shri Chaitanya Prasad Majhi, Minister of Education.

vii) PUNJAB

(1) Shri Harnam Das Johar, Minister, Education.

(2) Shri Lakhmir Singh Randhawa, Minister for Technical Education and Industrial Training.

viii) RAJASTHAN

Shri Hari Kumar Audichaya, Education Minister (in Hindi)

ix) TAMIL NADU

Dr. C. Aranganayagam, Minister for Education, Science and Technology.

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x) TRIPURA

Shri Rabindra Debbarma, Minister incharge of School Education

xi) UTTAR PRADESH

Education Minister (in Hindi)

xii) WEST BENGAL

Shri Anisur Rahaman, Minister of State for Education (Primary, Secondary and Madarsa)

xiii) ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS

Shri K. Kandaswamy, Councillor.

xiv) PONDICHERRY

Shri A. Gandhiraj, Education Minister.

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SHRI R.K. KHRIMEY, MINISTER, EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, ARUNACHAL PRADESH

It is a matter of great pleasure and privilege for me to be amidst the august body of the Central Advisory Board of Education. The meeting is being organised at the most opportune time. It will help in taking stock of achievements in the field of education since adoption of NPE, 1986. The Review on National Policy of Education and Prof Acharya Ramamurti Committee by Shri N Janardhana Reddy Committee has delineated various issues of improving the quality of education vis-a-vis national objectives.

There is no doubt that the NPE, 1986 has created an atmosphere in the country to be concerned with the education of disadvantaged groups of the society under the leadership of Late Rajiv Gandhi former Prime Minister of India. He had foreseen that for Social Justice, education can play a catalytic role in those sections of society who have remained deprived so far in participating various programmes of national development.

We are grateful to the Central Govt. for their assistance in bringing qualitative and quantitative development in the field of education in Arunachal Pradesh. Consequently the young boys and girls have come up in various walks of life for social and economic development of the State. We feel happy that Arunachal Pradesh has remained a zone of peace and harmony in North Eastern region.

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We are making all efforts to remove disparities amongst different tribes of Arunachal Pradesh to bring equity in education. The area in vast. We are having international borders with Bhutan, China and Myanmar. I shall be grateful if this august body recommends inclusion of Arunachal Pradesh also in the development of borders states for special assistance in the field of education under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme being implemented in the States like Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir. All educational activities in the State, which comprises 70% of Scheduled Tribe population, are being conducted by Govt. agencies.

There are few voluntary organisations, who are functioning in the State on cent per cent grant out of State Exchequer. we are to spend lot of money for building infrastructural facilities e.g. classroom, workshops, laboratories, hostel accommodation, incentives for tribal students and also for providing residential accommodation to all staff posted in Arunachal Pradesh. Hence, I would like to impress upon the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Ministry of Welfare to provide special grants to the State in relaxation to the norms set for various Centrally Sponsored Schemes.

We have given priority to the goal of universal elementary education. The programme of expansion as well as consolidation of education is going on simultaneously in the State. There are 1200 approx habitats which cannot be covered under any programme of formal, non-formal and adult education according to set norms. We have taken up an innovative scheme

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in a phased manner to provide educational facilities of preschooling, elementary through non-formal approach and also to the adults during Eighth Plan with the help of educational workers. We will need help of NCERT, Directorate of Adult Education in training the educational workers by raising a team of resource persons at the district level.

Due to rapid expansion of education in the State and also with the adoption of various Centrally Sponsored Schemes, the administrative set up at the State and District level has become ineffective. The problems of education at the grass root level could not be taken care of through centralised approach. We have already completed the exercise on school mapping and also survey on educational administration in collaboration with NIEPA. The process of decentralised planning has already started so that need based programmes are taken up in our Annual Operating Plans. A task force is being set up to advise the State Govt. for effective administrative set-up at State, District and Block levels. It is hoped that the UGC, NCERT and NIEPA will extend necessary help by providing expertise to complete the assignment in time.

There is a wide gap between work and education. There is normal,tendency amongst the youth to be dependent upon others for their basic necessities. They lack dignity of labour. Hence a programme of Work Experience and Vocationalistion is being introduced during Eighth Plan in all Schools of Arunachal Pradesh commencing from 92-93. The Centrally Sponsored Schemes of

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Vocationalisation at plus 2 stage is being introduced in selected schools on the basis of study made by EdCIL.

Lots of young men and women are unemployed after completion of their studies in colleges and technical institutions. I would like to request the Ministry of HRD to provide seats in the institutions of management studies so that the qualified students can try for self employment.

We are following three language formula effectively as per decision of the CABE. Efforts are being made to develop learning materials in local dialects to be used at the elementary level. It will facilitate the learners at Classes I and II level to study through their mother tongues. It may also help in reducing the drop rate in Primary classes.

National curriculum is being followed in Arunachal Pradesh. The textual material is being adopted with the help of NCERT. We do hope that the NCERT will continue to help the State in adaptation of teaching learning Material until expertise is developed for academic works.

There are five Navodaya Vidyalaya functioning in the State. We hope that the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti will come forward to establish at least one school in each of the remaining six districts of the State in relaxation to the normal norms since the State is under-developed the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti may chalk out programmes for providing Navodaya Vidyalayas after building infra-structural facilities. The State shall, however,

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ensure to provide sufficient land free of cost for establishing Navodaya Vidyalayas.

The teachers play very important role in education in tribal areas. Majority of our teachers come from different parts of the country.

We are to ensure to provide them residential accommodation. Moreover, the teachers working in interior areas are deprived of the basic amenities. Hence we propose to provide some incentives in terms of suitable accommodation and special pay to the teachers working in difficult and inaccessible areas. The Central Govt. may assist the State by giving additional fund to motivate the teachers working in remote areas on the international borders. The voluntary Organisation e.g. Rama Krishna Mission, Vivekananda Shiksha Prasar Vibhag, Donyi Polo Mission, and Boum Kakir Mission are doing commendable job by providing quality education. The State Govt. is providing grant to these organisations out of State budget as per norms laid down for Govt. Schools. Such organisations need special assistance to maintain the institutions properly. It is hoped that the Ministry of Welfare will be generous in giving assistance to meet the shortfall in grants to such organisations.

We have established four colleges and one university in the State. All efforts are being made to build necessary infrastructural facilities for these colleges and university with the limited resources. We hope that the UGC will provide necessary assistance for the State by providing grant in relaxation to the

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set norms.

Arunachal Pradesh is facing resource crunch in implementing various schemes since 1990-91 due to nonrecommendations of financial grant to meet committed liabilities of Seventh Five year Plan by the Ninth Finance Commission. The Education Department has been adversely affected due to diversion of Plan allocation to meet the committed liabilities including salaries, wages and stipend etc. Moreover, the allocation for the Education Department is inadequate to meet the minimum requirement of infrastructural facilities for qualitative and quantitative improvement of Education. Hence the Ministry of Human Resource Development may consider provision of additional fund to the State.

Thus I do feel that Arunachal Pradesh is also keeping pace with the rest of the States in the field of education. We shall sincerely implement various schemes for improving the quality of education as envisaged by NPERC and as approved by the CABE. However, I reiterate that unless the Central Govt. provide additional fund, the task for implementing the various educational schemes may not be possible in Arunachal Pradesh being underdeveloped and backward State.

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(ii) SMT. BHUMI DHAR BARMAN,MINISTER, EDUCATION, ASSAM

We thank the Govt. of India and Shri Arjun Singhji for convening this meeting of CABE. This will give us an opportunity of looking afresh on our activities in the field of education in the background of NPE Educational policy is a dynamic subject. It has interaction with the society at large. As the society itself is changing, the educational policy has to keep pace with the time so that it can serve the society appropriately. I am sure this will give us an opportunity to look at the frontiers of the educational scene and its emerging contours.

We have taken steps for implementation of NPE in our State. The implementation process releases various challenges from time to time. It calls for more resources, human and financial. We want to achieve the best for the people through education. For a backward state like ours, fund is always a constraint. We Look forward to the Govt. of India for more liberal assistance for implementation of NPE.

The national GER at the elementary level is 110.70% (1989). As against this, the figure on our State is 93.6% (1991). As is obvious, there is a gap between the national figure and our State figure. We propose to bridge this gap as early as possible. Our strategy to achieve this will be provision of a number of incentive schemes like supply of free textbooks, substantial scholarships for girls and children, of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, mid-day meals etc.

The teacher-pupil ratio of 1:40 in the general areas

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and 1:30 in the hill areas is considered normal in our State. In addition, the single teacher schools will have to be provided with a second teacher as per national policy. Further, there is a requirement of posting a third teacher in those schools where enrolment exceeds 80. All these factors have also to be viewed in the background of special topography of our State. Small rivulets and streams create barriers during monsoon. Similarly, in the hilly terrain, the geography dictates increasingly the requirement and, location of the schools within the arithmetical figures.

Assam is a State having ethnic diversity. Children coming from homes speaking different languages have to be provided with schools and sections separately so that they can obtain their education in their mother tongue. This necessarily calls for more teachers for a given number of students. This being so, we are required to provide teachers at the primary stage for children speaking different languages when their number is more than 10. This is now required to be provided in the upper-primary and high school levels also. At present, we are imparting Primary education 13 languages in our State.

To cope with this situation, we are required to provide 10,000 additional teachers at the primary level.

In addition, we are giving stress on Science and Mathematics education at the upper-primary level. We have taken some steps already in the year 1991-92 in this regard. For this

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purpose, we need 1255 additional graduate science teachers at the upper-primary level.

People have taken initiative in setting up or primary schools in our State. Considering the need of such schools in backward and unserved areas of the State, Govt. have provincialised 3000 primary schools during 1991-92. In future also, depending on the need we will have to provincialise some more schools.

In addition to these matters, an approach has already been made through non-formal and adult education for the illiterates and drop-outs. We hope to achieve the goal of universal elementary education with these measures by the 9th Five Year Plan period.

Training of teachers is a very important segment of our educational policy. Teachers have to be trained right from primary level up to the degree level. There are some institutions where training can be imported. But they are not adequate to meet the present situation. As for instance only 62% of the primary teachers and 25% of the middle-school teachers are trained. Therefore, the rest of the teachers have to be trained within a short time frame.

On adult and non-formal education, we have taken a programme for involving the people. Instead of giving emphasis on the departmental approach, we are adopting a people oriented approach. This is sought to be achieved by making committees at the village, block and district levels. In addition, voluntary

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organisations, local clubs, social workers, retired teachers, and NSS workers etc. are being associated for implementation of the scheme. We hope that this will produce the results quickly, without creating any over-heads for the Govt. We wanted it to be a people's programme with Govt.'s participation so that people get the right signal on the scheme.

The programme of RFLP has been revised by the Govt. of India. This has created difficulties for the project officers and other field functionaries as the scale of remuneration, has been reduced substantially. Some of them have taken the matter to the High Court and the Supreme Court. Because of the difficulties already created due to reduction in the quantum of remuneration, the field level functionaries expressing their discontenment. The matter can be sorted out if Govt. of India agrees that it will reconsider the scheme and continue to give the remuneration as fixed originally without any reduction. In any case; the State Government is not creating any fixed over-heads for posts etc. from now onwards. Govt. of India may please consider reviewing its decision favourably.

We have given priority to the scheme for vocationalisation of secondary education. There is no denying the fact that vocationalisation at secondary stage will take the pressure away from the colleges and other institutions of higher learning as well as provide them with skills for eking out their livelihood.

In this background, we have already introduced

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vocational streams in 50 (fifty) higher secondary schools during 1990- 91 and another 50(fifty) schools during 1991-92. Considering the level of unemployment in our State, we would request the Govt. of India to make more fund available to us, so that we can introduce vocational streams in more schools in our State.

Considering the importance of vocational education in the society, I would request the Government of India to consider introduction of vocational streams at the high school stage itself. If this is done, it will provide an opportunity to the boys and girls to have better grounding and an exposure in various disciplines.

We welcome the importance given by the Govt. of India for restoration of academic calendar in universities. We have already taken steps in our State for improving the academic atmosphere in the universities and other institutes of higher learning. The most important aspect of the university education is regular instruction on a pre-determined basis, so that students are aware of what they have to do. In addition, absence of students from universities during class hours leaves not only to the wastage of resources of both human and financial but also create times tensions in the society. It is, therefore, in the general interest and well-being of society that the universities follow the academic calendar strictly.

We have noted with satisfaction that the UGC has accepted the need for setting up of some of its regional offices.

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I take this opportunity of requesting you for setting up a regional office of UGC with adequate authority and functions at Guwahati.

Distance education is in a nascent stage in our State. We are aware of the need of making available the facilities for education at secondary and degree and post-graduate levels through correspondence course to those who could not get education in the normal process. Further, those who want to improve their qualifications in various disciplines, including professional subjects, should also be given an opportunity to do so through correspondence courses. This is a new area in which we do not have much of an experience. We therefore look forward to the Govt. of India for guidance on this subject.