RESOURCES AND REVIEW
8.1 The Education Commission of 1964-66, the National
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Education Policy of 1968 and practically all others concerned with education have stressed that neither the egalitarian goals nor the practical, development-oriented objectives of the Indian society can be realised without making investments in education of an order commensurate with the nature and dimensions of the task.
8.2 Some resources can be raised by mobilisation of donations, asking the beneficiary communities to maintain school buildings and also keep the school system supplied with some of the consumables, raising the fees at higher levels of education and effecting some savings by optimal use of facilities. Institutions involved with research and the development of technical manpower could also mobilize some funds by levying a cess or charge on the user agencies and entrepreneurs. All these measures have to be taken not only to reduce the burden on State resources but also for creating a greater sense of responsibility within the education system. The fact, however, remains that all these measures would contribute only marginally to the total funding required for programmes such as: the universalisation of elementary education; liquidating illiteracy; equality of access to educational opportunities to all sections throughout the country; enhancing the social relevance, quality and functional effectiveness of educational programmes; generating knowledge and developing technologies in scientific fields crucial to self-sustaining economic development; and creating critical consciousness of the values and the imperatives of national survival. The deleterious consequences of non-investment or inadequate investment on education are indeed very serious.
8.3 If universalisation of elementary educational and removal of illiteracy are put off indefinitely, not only will India have an utterly unacceptable level of illiteracy at the turn of the century, but the success of the programmes for population control, health for all, progressive augmentation of productivity, diversification and dispersal of employment opportunities and the initiatives to bring about greater cohesion and counteract divisive forces will also be greatly jeopardised. Again, if higher education is not reoriented, we will have millions of young people with barren degrees and with little motivation or commitment to our cherished values, work ethos and the competence to participate productively in economic activities.
8.4 It is impossible to compute the cost of neglecting vocational and technical education and of research. Sub-optimal performance in these fields could cause irreparable damage to the Indian economy. The network of institutions set up from time to time since independence to facilitate the application of science and technology would need to be substantially and expeditiously updated, since they are fast becoming obsolete.
8.5 In view of these imperatives, therefore, it is proposed that education be treated as a highly critical investment for
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national development and survival. The National Policy on Education, 1968, had laid down that the investment on education be gradually increased to reach a level of expenditure of six per cent of the national income as early as possible. Since the actual level of investment has remained far short of that target, it is now imperative that greater determination is shown to find the funds for the programmes laid down in this Policy. While the actual requirements would be computed from time to time by close monitoring and review, it is proposed that the outlay on education hereafter would uniformly exceed the level recommended in the 1968 National Policy on Education.
REVIEW 8.6 The implementation of this Policy must be reviewed every five years. Appraisals at short intervals would also be made to ascertain the progress of implementation and the trends emerging from time to time.