APPENDIX D QUESTION OF CONTINUANCE OF I.SC. COURSES DURING THE SECOND PLAN PERIOD

The Central Advisory Board of Education has recommended to all the State Governments that Three-Year Degree Course should. be introduced and that it should be preceded by either a pre-University course or a Higher Secondary course. A large number of our Technical colleges like the Engineering college and Medical college are taking students who have passed the I.Sc. examination. If I.Sc. classes are abolished then these colleges will have to select their students after the students have passed a pre-University examination or a Higher Secondary examination and these students will have to be trained for one year more either in the Technical colleges or in the colleges which have been teaching up to the Intermediate standard now. If they, are trained in the Technical colleges, all the Technical colleges will have to put up additional buildings and will have to purchase additional equipment. The equipment of the existing colleges, teaching up to the T.Sc. standard which cannot be converted into B.Sc. colleges will be wasted. The energy which could be directed in improving the education in other spheres is unnecessarily directed towards putting up buildings and getting equipment for the Technical colleges for teaching up to the present Intermediate standard. The students of the States which have not got all kinds of Technical institutions will be put to further difficulties if selections are made after pre-University stage and the students are asked to go and read in these institutions for one year more. The Engineering and Medical colleges in order to provide for failure will have to take more students than what they actually require for their courses. The number of students who will pass may not be exactly equal to the number of students required for the Technical courses. Sometimes they may be more and sometimes they may be less. If they are less then the training facilities in the Technical colleges will be wasted. If they are more then they will create a problem.

Considering these difficulties and also considering the fact that we have based all our Technological training on the basis of the I.Sc. syllabus, it may be Worth while to leave I.Sc. courses undisturbed during the present Five-Year Plan period when we need a large number of technicians and engineers.

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