APPENDIX `C' MEMORANDUM ON ITEM 5 : APPRAISAL OF COMPULSORY EDUCATION PROGRAMMES AND ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FOR THEM.
The programme of expansion of primary education, which is a core programme in the Third Plan, has reached a point of crisis. On the one hand, enrolments in elementary schools have exceeded all expectations, owing to the great enthusiasm of the public, especially in rural areas. On the other hand, the funds allocated to the programme have been drastically reduced as a result of the national emergency. The situation is serious and needs immediate attention.
Enrolments.--The original target for the Third Five Year Plan was to increase the enrolment at the primary stage from 343.4 lakhs (or 61.1% of the total population in the age-group 6-11) in 1960-61 to 496.4 lakhs (or 76.4% of the total population in the age-group 6-11) in 1965-66. At the middle school stage, the original target was to increase the enrolment from 62.9 lakhs (or 22.8% of the total popu- lation in the age-group 11-14) in 1960-61 to 97.5 lakhs (or 28:6% of the total population in the age-group 11-14) in 1965-66. Thus, the target was to enrol 188 lakhs of additional children in the Plan period or about 36 lakhs per year.
The public enthusiasm and hunger for education has been so great that, in the first two years of the Plan, the target have been considerably exceeded. From the figures supplied by the State Governments, it appears that about 71 lakhs of additional children have been enrolled in primary schools in 1961-63. During the same period, about 19 lakhs of additional children have been enrolled in middle schools. Taking the elementary stage as a whole, therefore, about 90 lakhs of children have been enrolled in schools in the first two years as against a target of 72 lakhs only. If this enthusiasm can be kept up, it would be possible to enrol about 80% of the children in the age-group 6-11 and 30% of the children in the age- group 11-14 by 1965-66.
Shortage of funds.-This bright picture of large enrolments which has been welcomed in all quarters has, unfortunately, to be contrasted with the drastic reduction in funds available. This is due to a variety of reasons. On the one hand, owing to shortfalls in raising local resources and cuts in central assistance, the total finances available to State Governments have been reduced. On the other hand, expenditure on essential services directly connected with the defence effort has increased. Non-plan expenditure has also increased due to increase in salaries etc. The total resources available to education have, therefore, become limited. Within education itself, programmes like scientific education, technical training, N.C.C., and physical education have to be expanded. Consequently, the funds available to elementary education have been drastically reduced and the reduction in this sector is even greater than that in education as a whole.
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The total expenditure on general education in the State Sector of the Third Plan is about Rs. 320 crores. The actual progress in the first three years, as against the targets, can be seen in the following tables :
Expenditure as it Expenditure as it is Year of Plan ought out to have actually being incur- been incurred red
(Rs. in Crores) (Rs. in Crores)
First 40 38
Second 50 53
Third 61 55
Fourth 74
Fifth 95
TOTAL 320 146 or 45.6 per cent in three years
It will be seen that, in the first two years of the Plan we have exceeded the financial target to some extent. In the third year the financial provision should have risen to Rs. 61 crores or so. But here we see the effect of the emergency. The total financial allocation to education is only about Rs. 55 crores (which implies a nominal increase of 4 per cent cut and we do not expect an expenditure of more than Rs. 53 crores). In other words. the provision for 1963- 64 is almost the same as that in 1962-63 (which only implies a continuance of the status quo without any development). Taking the three years of the Plan as a whole, we will spend only 45.6 per cent of the Plan provision as against 47.2 per cent that we should have spent. There is thus a shortfall of Rs. 6 crores already. Even if we assume that we will strive our best in the remaining two years of the Plan and raise the outlay by 30 per cent every year, we shall spend only Rs. 69 crores in the fourth year and Rs. 90 crores in the fifth year. This will mean a total expenditure of Rs. 303 crores or a shortfall of Rs. 17 crores. There is therefore, every reason to assume that there would be a short-fall of Rs. 20-30 crores in the State education sector in the Third Plan.
EFFECT OF REDUCTION IN RESOURCES What is the effect of this shortfall in resources allocated to elementary education? It is two-fold : (1) there is a great shortage of teachers; and (2) the programmes of qualitative improvement as teacher training or basic education are getting neglected.
The greatest difficulty today is that the State Governments do not have adequate resources for appointment of the teachers required. This is due partly to reduction of funds available for elementary education and partly to an increase in salaries of
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teachers (or their, allowances), which is very essential. For the country as a whole, the total shortage of teachers is estimated at about 80,000. This shortage will increase in the next two years and unless funds can be found to appoint at least 100,000 additional teachers it will not be possible to keep up the tempo which has been created in the first two years of the Plan.
Two other programmes which are also suffering for lack of funds are (i) programmes for expansion and improvement of training of teachers and (ii) programmes of basic education. The standard of our training institutions leaves much to be desired and these have to be improved. We have also to prepare for the Fourth Plan. Expanded and improved training programmes for primary teachers have, therefore, to be undertaken in the last 2 or 3 years of the Third Plan. But no funds are available for this Similarly, there are no, funds available for programmes of basic education and for the introduction of productive labour into schools.
Experience of the Second Plan.--How shall we meet this situation? The experience of the Second Five Year Plan under similar circumstances can be of help. It will be recalled that a review of the Plan as a whole was held at the beginning of the third year of the Second Plan. It was when, found there would be a large shortfall of Rs. 12 crores in the State sector. In order to meet it, a scheme was started (originally in the centrally sponsored sector, although it was transferred to the State sector later on) under which 60,000 additional teachers were to be sanctioned to State Governments for increasing the effort at the primary stage. This scheme produced two good results: (1) it helped to reduce the shortfall to some extent; and (2) it also helped to increase the targets in the Second Five Year Plan. When the Second Plan was finalised, the expectation was that the total enrolment at the primary stage would be 325.4 lakhs. It was expected that, owing to the appointment of these additional 60,000 teachers, this enrolment would increase by 24 lakhs and go up to 349.4 lakhs. This target has almost been achieved and the provisional statistics of 1960-61 show that the enrolment in classes IN is 348 lakhs. In comparison with these good results, the additional expenditure involved in the scheme was very small.
The above scheme, taken by itself, was not enough to meet the entire shortfall in the Second Five Year Plan and an additional scheme was, therefore also taken up. The object of this scheme was to enable the State Governments to establish new training institutions for elementary teachers and to expand existing ones so that the output of trained teachers for the Third Five Year Plan might be expedited. This scheme was also very successful. Under it, about 27,000 additional seats were created in the training institutions for elementary teachers. It is, therefore, felt that a similar scheme should also be introduced in the Third Five Year Plan. The programme of improving the training of elementary teachers is the most crucial for raising the standards of education. A committee under the chairmanship of Shri R. R. Singh has gone into the problem in detail and made several recommendations to improve the quality of teacher education. It has also suggested that this programme should be started in the third year of this Plan
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and should be accorded the highest priority in the Fourth Plan. A stage has now come when this recommendation should be seriously examined and accepted.
Proposals.-On the basis of this experience of the Second Five Year Plan, therefore, the following proposals are put forward to develop the programme of elementary education:
(1) A review of the educational expenditure incurred or to be incurred in the first three years of the Third Plan shows that there would be a shortfall of Rs. 20-30 crores in the educational sector of the Third Plan of the States. Almost the whole of this cut may fall on the sector of elementary education.
(2) New and urgent schemes should be taken up in the Central sector to balance this anticipated short-fall. From this point of view, the following three schemes are suggested :
(a) A new scheme for sanctioning additional posts of teachers should be adopted for the Third Plan on the lines of the scheme adopted in the Second Plan. It should be implemented from 196364. The total target should be to provide 100,000 additional teachers to State Governments.
(b) A new scheme for the expansion and improvement of training facilities at the elementary stage should also be adopted and implemented from 1963-64. Assistance should be available not only for expansion of training facilities but for improvement of existing training institutions on the lines recommended in the report of the Study Group on teacher training. The programme of increasing the supply of women teachers should be included in and emphasized in this scheme.
(c) A new scheme should also be adopted for improvement and expansion of basic education. The main programme to be assisted under this scheme would include:
(i) Orientation Programme.-The programme of orienting primary schools to the basic pattern which ought to have been completed by the second year of the Third Plan is still languishing. The highest priority should be given to this programme and all the schools should be orientated to the basic pattern as quickly as possible.
(ii) Improvement of Basic Schools.-Although, about 21% of the existing elementary schools have been completed to the basic pattern. the working in a large proportion of these schools is far from satisfactory. Therefore, a programme should be drawn up to lay down definite criteria which must be fulfilled by each basic school and steps should be taken to develop all the existing basic schools to the minimum standards thus prescribed. A definite programme spread over a short period of time should.be prepared for this purpose in each State and vigorously implemented.
(iii) Conversion of New Schools to Basic Pattern.-Every year, not less than 5% of the non-basic elementary schools should be con- verted to the basic pattern.
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All these schemes should be in the centrally sponsored sector and a sum of Rs. 30 crores (which is the anticipated shortfall) should be set aside for them.
......................(Ministry of Education)
The provision in the Third Plan budget for introduction of free and compulsory primary education has been made on the basis of child population of 6-11 age-group as estimated by the Government of India in 1960-61. But in certain states, as for instance in West Bengal, there has been an unusually heavy increase of population much larger than that estimated by the Government of India as revealed in the census figures. To achive the target of free and compulsory primary education in these States it will be necessary not only to maintain the steady progress but so to accelerate it as to cover the additional child population over the earlier estimate.
In West Bengal child population in 1961 was estimated by the Government of India at 35.10 lakhs at 11.82% of the total population but according to Government of India's (revised) estimate the figure is much higher being 42.48 lakhs. This means an additional burden of nearly 7.38 lakhs of children on the State which could not be taken into consideration when the plan provision was made. Corresponding figure at the end of the Third Plan period in place of 38.30 lakhs according to Government of India's earlier estimate will be 48.98 lakhs according to the latest estimate based on the census figure, that is, the gap will be left still wider unless appropriate steps are taken right from now for accelerating the progress.
Calculated at the accepted rate of per capita expenditure. re- curring and non-recurring, the additional fund required would be Rs. 4.20 crores p.a. recurring and Rs. 10.50 crores p.a. non-recurring, for the child population of 6-11 age-group.
With the progress of the primary education for the children of age group 6-11 expansion of education in the middle stage will also become imperative because of the larger throw-up from the lower age- group. Calculated at the accepted rate of per capita expenditure additional fund required for the purpose would be approximately Rs. 9.7 crores for the remaining three years of Third Plan period.
It is impossible for state Governments concerned to tackle such a problem successfully unless, additional funds outside. the plan ceiling are placed at their disposal. ....................................(Government of West Bengal)
The number of additional pupils of the age-group 6 to 11 to be brought to schools during the plan period was originally estimated on the basis of a projected population increase. The figures thus arrived at have been completely upset by the census of 1961.
To take the example of the State of Assam the additional schooling facilities were planned on the basis of an estimated population of 118 lakhs in 1965-66. The census of 1961 has however, revealed that population of the State has already reached this figure in 1961. The estimated population of the State in 1965-66 taking the modest 2 per cent annual increase will be 130 lakhs. Then schooling facilities have to be provided for about 1.40 lakhs
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pupils of the age-group 6 to 11 in addition to what has been provided in the plan. Unless increased allocation of funds is made the physical target will be substantially reduced.
It is therefore proposed that a realistic apprisal of the schemes for the introduction of compulsory primary education in the country be made.
The scheme of Compulsory Primary Education has been introduced in the State from August 1961. The first enumeration of children revealed that the additional enrolment may go beyond the estimated target of 10 lakhs of children during the Third Plan. There are about 3,282 school-less villages of all kinds. To enforce full compulsion, schools will have to be opened in these villages. Besides, additional staff will have to be provided for the existing schools also every year to meet the demand of increased enrolment. And to keep up the teacher-pupil ratio of 1 :40 only, actual requirement of teachers will be about 25,000 to meet the additional enrolment of 10 lakhs of children during the Third Five Year Plan at the rate of 5,000 teachers per year. Thus the total teachers requirement would come to 28,282. By suitable adjustments it may be possible to manage the schools with 25,000 teachers. According to the present programme provision has been made for the appointment of 16,800 teachers, during the Third Five Year Plan, costing 634.5 lakhs as against 923.02 lakhs. This heavy amount could not be accommodated within the plan ceiling. Therefore, the entire cost of the compulsory primary education scheme may kindly be treated outside the plan ceiling earning 100% aid.
(b) Side by side with the compulsory primary education the construction of class rooms will have to be taken up for providing accommodation for the additional children. At present provision has been made for the construction of 2,865 class rooms during the Third Plan period. The subsidy to be paid by Government has been fixed at Rs. 1,000 per class room. Previously the State Government was providing 60% of the cost and the other 40% was met by public contribution. Due to the reduction of the Government subsidy to Rs. 1,000 per class room there was no progress in 61-62 for want of public contribution. The Planning Commission will have to be appraised of the fact and the need to increase the Government quota to 60% of the cost of the class room and to bring this item too outside the plan ceiling under compulsory primary education.
(Government of Mysore)