Union Minister for Human Resource and Development Kapil Sibal has said that it is not the right time for allowing institutions which operate “for profit” in country’s higher education sector.“I don’t think it is the right time yet to let ‘for-profit’ institutions in higher education operates in the country. I am not saying such institutions would never be allowed in the future. But as of now, I can say the time is not right,” said Sibal.
His comments came at a time when India is at a brink of establishing deep educational tie-ups with foreign countries. The minister is headed to Washington next week, where he is scheduled to meet Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the first of its kind dialogue between the two countries on higher education.
The Indo-US Summit scheduled on October 13, 2011 is likely to become an annual affair involving government, academics and industry, and aim at fostering university linkages, student and teacher exchanges, and joint courses and programmes.
It is hoped that high-quality educational institutions in the US would be interested in tapping and investing in a large pool of young, English-speaking and bright student community in India, and the mutually-beneficial arrangement would result in the creation of a highly-skilled workforce.
Sibal himself has been backing entry of foreign university and institutions to set up campuses in India or to collaborate with Indian universities in various other ways.
Whether or not to allow ‘for-profit’ institutions to operate in India is just one of the many debates raging on this issue. A Planning Commission approach paper for the 12th Five-Year Plan has advised looking at ‘for-profit’ institution in a more “pragmatic manner”, the argument being that many of the top universities in the world would not be interested in coming to India if such rules existed.
But Sibal did not agree. “Foreign universities are extremely keen to tap into human resources globally. They want to access human resources and to develop skills. And the Indian student community is rated as one of the best in terms of knowledge and intelligence. The large number of Indian students would attract the best of institutions from around the world,” he said.
The government is in the process of legislating a new law to regulate the entry and operation of foreign institutions in the country. The Foreign Universities Bill has met with resistance from some political quarters but Sibal said he was ready to clear all “misgivings” related to the Bill.
The minister said the government was talking to all stakeholders and would ensure that the Bill has everyone’s support.
The minister said the government was talking to all stakeholders and would ensure that the Bill has everyone’s support.
[Source: Indian Express]
