[Reader-list] The Student movement, Higher education and the End of neoliberal triumphalism

[A. Mani]

http://www.pragoti.in/node/4765

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The problem, as you all know, is not restricted to the US. As in all
things neoliberal, most countries are increasingly learning from the
United States. Consider the case of India. I hardly need to tell this
audience, that higher educational facilities in this country are
grossly inadequate. For example, the proportion of the population in
the 18-23 age group accessing higher education stood averaged just 15
per cent across the country in 2009-10.[iii] What is more the ratio
varied hugely across states from 9 per cent in Assam to 47.9 per cent
in Delhi? The figure for marginalised and underprivileged sections
like the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was 11.1 and 10.3 per
cent respectively. In terms of availability of educational facilities,
there were many states where there were less than 5 colleges for every
100,000 population in the 18-23 age-group, and a large number where
that figure stood at less than 10.
However, this shortage exists despite some expansion in higher
educational facilities.  Between 1990-91 and 2007-08 the number of
colleges in the country rose from 4900 to 13400, the number of
professional institutions from 900 to 6900 and the number of
universities from 180 to 410 (Economic Survey). Part of the reason is
because of private investment in education. The shift towards more
private provision is reflected at all stages in education – but if
anything, the move has been even sharper in higher education, and
mostly concentrated in the past few years. In 2000-01 the share of
government and private aided higher educational institutions stood at
33 and 42 per cent respectively, while that of unaided institutions
stood at 25 per cent. These figures had changed to 25, 32 and 43 per
cent respectively by 2005-06. Enrolment has been increasing steadily
in higher education in the past two decades from 3.4 million in
1984-85 to 13.64 million in 2008-09 (UGC 2011).[iv] However if we look
at the institutional affiliation of students, the share of government
and private aided institutions in enrolment fell from 41 and 37 per
cent respectively to 36 and 33 per cent, whereas that of unaided
private institutions rose from 22 to 31 per cent. In the even in 2009,
there were about 17.3 million students enrolled in various streams of
higher education in India (MHRD 2011).
These are if anything underestimates of the current situation, since
these numbers are likely to have excluded a large no of private
institutions that do not offer certification reflecting recognition of
their “degrees” by the government. However, there are a number of
private institutions that have indeed been established with
recognition. Over the 5 years ending March 2011, 81 private
universities had been set up through various state Acts passed by the
respective state legislatures across the country. Moreover, the UGC
had legitimised some private investment in education by giving them
deemed university status. As of 2011 there were 130 Deemed to be
Universities in the country, both public and private. Based on the
recommendations of the Radhakrishnan Commission a provision was
included under section 3 in the University Grants Commission Act of
1956 that institutions which have unique and distinct character of
their own could be deemed to be a university and enjoy the concomitant
privileges without losing their distinctive character. Originally,
this option was to be exercised only in the case of "institutions
which for historical reasons or for any other circumstances are not
universities, yet are doing work of high standard in specialised
academic fields comparable to a university and the granting of the
status of university would enable them to further contribute to the
cause of higher education which would mutually enrich the institution
and the university system." In the 35 years between 1956 and 1990,
only 29 institutions were granted the deemed university status.
However, the provision has been put to use more often in recent times
to advance the neoliberal agenda, with even private institutions being
deemed as universities. Further, since 2000, deemed university status
has been granted even to de novo institutions, with no proven record.
In the 15 years after 1990, 63 institutions were declared deemed
universities. Since then another 40 or so institutions have been
notified as deemed universities. Many of these are institutions which
provide professional education or training of a vocational kind. What
is more, certain state governments have been liberal in encouraging
the establishment of private “universities”. Twenty-four of the 81
private universities established through state Acts had been set up in
the State of Rajasthan alone.

This is indeed surprising. Obtaining and adopting the nomenclature
“university” in India has its regulatory implications. In principle,
the provision of higher educational services that delivers recognised
“degrees” cannot be undertaken as a commercial activity. As per law,
no educational service provider if recognised as a university by the
University Grants Commission (UGC) or is offered recognition by
organisations like the All India Council on Technical Education
(AICTE) can operate on a “for-profit” basis. Surpluses can be
generated based on fees charged, but those surpluses will have to be
ploughed back into the institution.
Despite this constraint some “not-for-profit” private players may have
chosen to enter the higher education area with charitable objectives,
as they had done in the past. But the rush of private interests into
formal higher education is indeed surprising if the no-profit
principle prevails. This gives rise to the suspicion that there is a
well-recognised move to change the rule so as to allow for profit
making in the educational sector. It is of course true that while
commercial activity in higher education (that is, for profit) is still
illegal in India, many of these are actually profit-making
institutions by another name. They charge relatively high fees and
find ways to siphon out the surplus. However, those in the business
for the long run are unlikely to be happy with these surreptitious
routes to profit, especially if the investments they have chosen to
make are large. So the private rush into higher education is perhaps
indicative of the fact that the rules governing higher education are
likely to change.


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Full article at http://www.pragoti.in/node/4765



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A. Mani




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