Higher education

I am a firm believer of German model of education. It might have its demerit, but I truly respect its spirit.
The German law says that every citizen has a right to pursue both primary as well as higher education at the institute of his/her choice. As long as he fulfills the required prerequisites, then no educational institute can bar him to select any course/degree he wants.

I also admire the US educational system.
Anybody can open a university. There are cases when the universities were opened just as a memorial of their dear departed son. This mechanism ensures limitless supply of seats and colleges actively compete to enroll the best talent. The courses need to be modified each year (no this years question paper is not a rehash of the previous 5 years question paper) so that they attract prospective students.

The fees are high, but the univs offer generous scholarships, TA and RAs to ensure that deserving candidates are not able to afford it. Scholarship is not seen as a grant, but as an investment by the college. It is to attract the brightest minds that can potentially turn into brand ambassadors for the University and also enhance the learning and experience of the whole batch.

However Indians have come up with a unique higher education system:
A license raj crippled with the curse of Eklavya Syndrome.
more on education system on

We have returned to the same old Gurukul system where by limiting the access to education, the higher castes can maintain its stature. We have created a small rank of elite colleges who are respected by the society not because of the knowledge it imparts, but because of the rigorous selection process.

good education is not picking up the brightest handful of the students wasting their 4 years and then boasting about their success. Its should be like a book… anybody who has time to go through it is eligible.

I see education as an enabler who prepares the youth to take up challenges and drive the development of the nation. However we end up subsidizing the education of a bunch of pomp ass IIT/IIM graduates who have huge egos and the only mission in life is to migrate to USA never to come back.

When you talk about education, people talk about reservation. I say, open 50 more colleges so that nobody who aspires to be educated is denied of it. Nobody talks about reservation in govt run primary schools.. why? simply because there are more seats than the people aspiring to take them.
For the country’s GDP to grow at 10%, the supply of educated professional workforce should increase by at least 15%. If you say that there should be a World Class university in each district of this country: I would say…. For a population of a billion and the world’s largest source of youth this is too little.
However the reality is:
1) In last 40 years we created only one IIT (Guhathi). And at least in this decade there are no plans of having a new campus.
2) We create 20 new NIT by renaming existing RECs. A new IIT by renaming University of Roorkee. Somebody tell me how does this eyewash matter?

However I am also against government allocating a bulk of the money I pay through Educational cess to subsidize Colleges rather than educate the 30% illiterate citizens we have. Opening private operators in high school education, medical care has definitely increased the cost of these services.
But I am ok with it. After all my government has limited funds and these private players have ensured that there is quality in the system. Indian Higher education on the other hand is rotten because private players are so much restricted.

So the only solution we have is to open up Private Universities. Allow FDI in education. And I thank Arjun Singh for giving his approval.