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Out
of general curiosity, I had been doing some amateurish
research on the prospect of the state of Bihar
in higher education. I was quite dismayed with
the facts and figures in relation to treatment
meted out to the state by the central dispensation
traditionally and continuing even now. Of course
major part of the blame lies with the state administration
on account of its failure to take any initiative
in this regard. Perhaps the state administration
had underestimated the beneficial impact of such
institutions in developing "Human Capability to
create Economic Advantage".
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Out
of over 250 odd research institutes under departments
like DAE, DOS, DST, DBT, ICAR, CSIR, DRDO, DIT and
Dept of Health, hardly 2-3 institutes are located
in Bihar. If we take population ratio as a surrogate
for equitable distribution ratio of such institutions,
then at least 7% of these research institutes should
have been located in the state. This would come
to a good 18 number of such institutions.
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Almost
all the ministries at the centre support at least
2-3 specialized institutions of excellence in
the relevant stream. For example, ministry of
program implementation has Indian Statistical
Institute, Ministry of Industry and Commerce has
Indian Institute of Foreign Trade and National
institute of Design, I&B has IIMC, NSD, NFTI and
likes, Tourism Ministry has IITTM and National
Institute of Catering and Foodcraft Technology,
Telecom and ICT has Media Lab Asia, CDAC, CDoT,
Food Processing Ministry has planned National
Institute of Food Processing and Entrepreneurship,
Shipping Industry has Marine Institutes, Ministry
of Finance has NIPF and Many other Institutes
through RBI and IRDA. Though there is a long list
of such institutions, not many of them are located
in the state. (perhaps an exception would be railway
for its Mechanical Engg. Institute).
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HRD
Ministry has planned university of excellence status
for Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata for which CCEA has
approved a sum of Rs 100 crore to each of them ( on
150 Yr) for setting up Nanotechnology and Biotechnology
centres. Even a central university status has eluded
the universities in the state, talking of status of
university of excellence would be quite premature
to say the least..
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HRD
Ministry has planned 2 more IISER (besides the existing
3 and one NISER at Bhubaneshwar), 2 More IIM's (one
at shillong already announced), 2-SPA's, 1-IIIT (
design and harware) at Coimbatore. State of Bihar
is nowhere in the reckoning for these institutions
as there is no determined bid for the same from the
state administration. State has been lucky to get
an IIT perhaps.
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The
union cabinet approved 4-NIDs recently but there seems
no talk for locating any of these in the state. Similarly,
the National Institute of Food Processing and Entrepreneurship
has already been allocated to Haryana.
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Recently a special budgetary allocation of 50 crores
was made for two agriculture universities of excellence
that is Pantnagar and Coimbatore. RAU could not have
any luck there.
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Knowledge Commission has recommended 3 apex bodies,
one each for Higher Education 'IRAHE', Vocational
Education 'NIVEPD', and for Science and Social Science
'NS3F'. Even Planning commission talks about constituting
'National Commission on Science and Technology'. Getting
one of these located in the state can help bring required
perceptional change about the state of education in
Bihar apart from greater focus on higher education
in the state, yet there seems to be no initiative
from the state administration in this regard.
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is a plan to upgrade 100 ITIs to Excellence Category.
There also we will have to wait and see the benefit
accruing to the state.
Bihar needs to make this anomaly in distribution of national
assets a big issue using media and all relevant forums.
Migration from the state for higher education should also
warrant significant policy weightage in allocation of
such institutions. However, nothing of this short seems
to be happening at present. needs to make this anomaly
in distribution of national assets a big issue using media
and all relevant forums. Migration out of state for higher
education should also warrant significant policy weightage
in allocation of such institutions. However nothing of
this short seems to be happening at present.
On the skewed distribution of these precious national
assets, when attention was drawn through an email, Dr.
Ahluwalia-Deputy Chairperson, Planning Commission, Dr
Sam Pitroda, Chairman National Knowledge Commission and
Dr. Bhargava- Vice Chairman National Knowledge Commission
squarely put the onus of initiative on the state administration.
Thus, only a determined effort from the state administration
can help rectify the above anomalies in the distribution
of these centres of excellence in academic and research
State administration is desired to work with an approach
of "Getting Things Done" to see that these institutions
become a functioning reality in the state.
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