Central Government

Education in Post-Independence India: Some Milestones

1947
India achieves Independence

1948-49
University Education Commission constituted; gives Report

1950
India becomes a Republic. Free and compulsory education enshrined as one of the Directive Principles of State Policy in the new Constitution

1951
Decennial Census yields a Literacy Rate (5+) of 18.3% (overall), 8.9% (female)
First Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) established at Kharagpur

1952-53
Secondary Education Commission constituted; gives Report

1956
University Grants Commission (UGC) established by Act of Parliament.
Indian Institute of Technology (Kharagpur) Act passed by Parliament
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru delivers the first convocation address at the first IIT (Kharagpur)

1958
Second IIT established at Mumbai

1959
Third and Fourth IITs established at Kanpur and Chennai, respectively

1961
NCERT established
Institutes of Technology Act passed by Parliament to provide a common legal framework for all IITs
First two Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) set up at Ahmedabad and Kolkata

1963
Fifth IIT established at Delhi

1964-66
Education Commission constituted; gives Report

1968
First National Policy on Education (NPE) adopted, in the light of the recommendations of the Education Commission

1963
Third IIM established at Banglore

1975
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme launched to provide for holistic development of children up to the age of six years

1976
Constitution amended to change “Education” from being a “State” subject to a “Concurrent” one

1984
Fourth IIM established at Lucknow

1985
Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) established by an Act of Parliament

1986
New National Policy on Education (NPE) adopted

1987-88
Many large centrally-assisted schemes like “Operation Blackboard”, “Educational Technology”, “Vocationalisation of Secondary Education”, etc., launched in pursuance of NPE, 1986
All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) vested with statutory status by an Act of Parliament
National Literacy Mission launched

1992
NPE, 1986, revised, based on a review by the Acharya Ramamurti Committee

1993
National Council of Teacher Education (NCTE) vested with statutory status by an Act of Parliament

1994
District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) launched to universalize primary education in selected districts
National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) established by UGC (with headquarters at Bangalore ) to assess and accredit institutions of higher education
National Board of Accreditation (NAB) established by AICTE to periodically evaluate technical institutions and programmes
Sixth IIT established at Guwahati

1995
Centrally-assisted Mid-Day Meal scheme launched in government and semi-government primary schools all over the country, with central assistance by way of free foodgrains

1996
Fifth IIM established at Kozhikode

1998
Sixth IIM established at Indore

2001
Decennial Census yields Literacy rate (7+) of 65.4% (overall), 53.7% (female)
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) launched to universalize elementary education of good quality all over the country
University of Roorkee converted into (the seventh) IIT

2002
Constitution amended to make Free and Compulsory Education, a Fundamental Right (yet to be brought into force)

2003
17 Regional Colleges of Engineering converted into National Institutes of Technology, fully funded by the Central Government

2004
Education Cess levied for raising additional finance needed to fulfill Government’s commitment to universalize quality basic education
Mid-Day Meal scheme revised to provide central assistance to meet cooking cost as well
EDUSAT, a satellite dedicated to education, launched

2005
National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions established by Act of Parliament

2006
Two Indian Institutes of Science Education & Research (IISERs) established at Kolkata and Pune, respectively

Stages of Education in India

Stages of Education in India , and an indication regarding corresponding age group of students for each stage, are shown in the table below:

*18 - 24 years is usually taken as the age group of students corresponding to university / tertiary education


Responsibility of the Centre, States and Local Bodies for Education
Allocation of responsibility for various subjects to different tier of government is ultimately laid down in the Constitution. From 1950, when the Constitution came into force, till 1976, Education was essentially a State subject, with role of Central Government being limited to

Running Central Universities , Central institutions of training and research, and institutions of national importance, and
Coordination and determination of standards in institutions for higher, scientific and technical education and research.

The Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act, 1976, shifted Education, in general, from the “State List” to the “Concurrent List”, thus giving both Central and State Governments jurisdiction over it, concurrently. The concept of concurrency was fleshed out in para 3.13 (“A Meaningful Partnership”) of the National Policy on Education, 1986, which reads as follows:-

3.13 The Constitutional Amendment of 1976, which includes Education in the Concurrent List, was a far-reaching step whose implications--substantive, financial and administrative--require a new sharing of responsibility between the Union Government and the States in respect of this vital area of national life. While the role and responsibility of the States in regard to education will remain essentially unchanged, the Union Government would accept a larger responsibility to reinforce the national and integrative character of education, to maintain quality and standards (including those of the teaching profession at all levels), to study and monitor the educational requirements of the country as a whole in regard to manpower for development, to cater to the needs of research and advanced study, to look after the international aspects of education, culture and Human Resource Development and, in general, to promote excellence at all levels of the educational pyramid throughout the country. Concurrency signifies a parternership, which is at once meaningful and challenging; the National Policy will be oriented towards giving effect to it in letter and spirit.

By the 72nd and 73rd Amendments to the Constitution, bodies of local self-government – Panchayati Raj bodies for rural and Municipal bodies for urban areas, respectively – were accorded Constitutional status, in 1993. Assignment of functions to these bodies is to be determined by laws enacted by individual State legislatures. However, the Eleventh and Twelfth Schedules of the Constitution provide illustrative lists of items which may, by law, be devolved on these local bodies. The Eleventh Schedule lists Education upto the Secondary level, Vocational Education, and Adult and Non-Formal Education, among others, for devolution to Panchayati Raj bodies.

Policy Framework

The Constitution
The Constitution of India is the ultimate document which guides State policy in all sectors, including Education. Details of provisions contained in the Constitution, which have a bearing on Education, have been listed on this website under the caption “Constitutional Provisions”.

Their more important features are:

Provision of free and compulsory education to all children upto the age of fourteen years
Education, in general, is the concurrent responsibility of the Union and the States.

However, (a) coordination and determination of standards in higher and technical education, and (b) institutions declared by Parliament by law to be institutions of national importance, are the responsibility of the Union .

Local authorities (Panchayats and Municipalities) are to be assigned a suitable role in education (especially School, Adult and Non-Formal Education) through individual State legislations.

State Governments and Local Authorities are expected to provide facilities for instruction in the mother tongue at the primary stage of education

Important Legislations
Next to the Constitution, State Policy is articulated through legislations. Some of the important Central legislations having a bearing on the subjects allotted to the Department of Higher Education are:

The University Grants Commission Act, 1956
The All India Council for Technical Education Act, 1987
The National Council for Minority Educational Institutions Act, 2004
The Copyright Act, 1957
The Apprentices Act, 1961

National Policies on Education

There have so far been mainly two comprehensive statements of the National Policy on Education, viz. those of 1968 and 1986. The former contained decisions of the Central Government on the recommendations of the National Commission on Education, 1964-66. The latter was a result of the renewed priority assigned to Education by the government of the Late Shri Rajiv Gandhi, who was Prime Minister during 1984-89. The 1986 policy was reviewed by a Committee constituted in 1990 under the chairmanship of Acharya Ramamurti. On the basis of the recommendations of this Committee, certain provisions of the 1986 policy were modified in 1992. Thus, in all, the following three comprehensive national policy statements exist on Education:

National Policy on Education, 1968
National Policy on Education, 1986
National Policy on Education, 1986, as modified in 1992

Policy Decisions on individual issues taken from time to time

Besides the above comprehensive policy statements, policy decisions on individual issues are taken from time to time, as needed - in the form of Resolutions, Schemes, Guidelines, Orders, etc.


Size of the Indian Education System

In keeping with its billion-plus population and high proportion of the young, India has a large formal Education System. Its target group (children and young persons in the 6-24 years age group) numbered around 411 million in 2003, or about 40% of the country's population.

Following are some indicators of the size of India's Education System (figures pertain to 2003-04, unless otherwise stated):

Target Population (6-24 years age group) (Estimate for 2003) : 411 million
Total Enrolments in all Educational Institutions (School to University) : 224 million
Number of Educational Institutions :
Schools : 1.18 million
Colleges (2004-05) : 17,625
Universities : (as on 31.03.05) : 338
(229 Universities + 96 Deemed Universities +13 Institutions of National Importance)
Number of Teachers : 6.2 million

(The above figures of enrolment, etc. do not include the non-formal system which aims to educate adult illiterates, above the age of 15 years.)


Important Achievements : Quantitative Expansion

Challenges before Indian Education

Access
While availability of elementary schools within a reasonable distance from habitations is now fairly universal, same cannot yet be said in regard to Secondary Schools and Colleges. Pockets still exist in many remote parts of the country where the nearest Secondary School or College is much too far for everyone to be able to attend.

Besides the physical availability of institutions, other barriers to access – e.g. socio-economic,linguistic–academic, physical barriers for the disabled, etc. – also need to be removed.


Participation & Equity
Gross Enrolment Ratios for the elementary, secondary and tertiary stages of education in 2003-04 were 85%, 39% and 9%, respectively. These participation rates are undoubtedly low, and need to be raised very substantially, for India to become a knowledge society / economy.

A linked challenge is one of equity. Participation rates in Education are poor largely because students from disadvantaged groups continue to find it difficult to pursue it. Even when they manage to participate, students suffering from disadvantages of gender, socio-economic status, physical disability, etc. tend to have access to education of considerably lower quality than the others, while the education system needs to provide them access to the best possible education so that they are able to catch up with the rest.


Quality
The challenge of quality in Indian education has many dimensions, e.g.
Providing adequate physical facilities and infrastructure,
Making available adequate teachers of requisite quality,
Effectiveness of teaching-learning processes,
Attainment levels of students, etc

Besides the need to improve quality of our educational institutions in general, it is also imperative that an increasing number of them attain world-class standards and are internationally recognized for their quality.

Relevance
Education in India needs to be more skill-oriented – both in terms of life-skills as well as livelihood skills. In sheer numerical terms, India has the manpower to substantially meet the needs of a world hungry for skilled workers, provided its education system can convert those numbers into a skilled work-force with the needed diversity of skills.

Management
Management of Indian education needs to build in greater decentralization, accountability, and professionalism, so that it is able to deliver good quality education to all, and ensure optimal utilization of available resources.

Resources
India ’s stated national policy - ever since 1968 - has been to raise public expenditure on Education to the level of 6% of GDP. On the other hand, in 2004-05, outlay of Central and State Governments for Education amounted to about 3.5% of GDP. Thus, the gap in allocations for Education is still substantial, and needs to be urgently bridged

Language in Education
The NCF 2005 clearly articulates the need for teaching in the child’s mother tongue at the primary stage. There is enough evidence around the world to show that children learn better when they begin their education in their first language. Acquiring reading and writing skills at the beginning of school is best done in a language familiar to the child. SSA should therefore encourage State and UTs to address the problems faced by children who begin school studying in a completely unknown language, especially in tribal areas. There are small sporadic efforts in some States on this issue. SSA guidelines should provide for bridge materials, teacher training components etc, wherever such disadvantages can
be addressed, to ensure smoother transition to the school language.

Ensuring that basic skills are learnt in early primary classes
Based on the feedback from some achievement surveys and internal assessment
by some States, there appears to be a need to ensure that the basic skills of literacy
and numeracy are definitely learnt by all students in the early primary classes of I and
II . A major reason for the learning deficits in the later primary classes of 3 to 5 is on
account of the inadequate foundation for these basic skills in the early classes. There
are several initiatives in the country that have tried to develop appropriate materials
and methods for this purpose. These need to be shared with others. Development of
strong ‘reading with comprehension’ skills should be a priority. Training of teachers
on appropriate early language teaching methods, a good pre-literacy, pre-numeracy
curriculum, assignment of good, child-friendly teachers to the early primary classes
would help in achieving this objective. SSA guidelines need to provide expressly for
such inter relation in the programme design.

Another major area of reform in the quality area is the teaching of language at
the primary stage. Language teaching methods in our classrooms focus on literacy
from the first day at school with little scope for development of oral skills, improving
vocabulary, use of language in various forms and comprehension. There is no clear
strategy for developing good reading skills early. The language teaching practices of
alphabet recitation and copying are even more inappropriate for children who come
from a different language background, i.e. for whom the school language is really a
second language. Our pre and in-service training programmes should prepare teachers
in good second language teaching strategies

English has now been introduced as a subject in Class I in 18 States. In most
other States it is introduced by Class III. This is a response of the system to people’s
aspirations for their children to learn good English. Though inappropriate, early
introduction of English in the primary school curriculum is here to stay. There needs to
be a lot of emphasis on improving the teaching of English at the primary stage.
This would involve development of an appropriate curriculum and materials, methods
of teaching of English relevant to our varied situations, training of teachers and even
recruitment of teachers who have adequate skills in English etc. A preliminary analysis
of English language teaching practices and materials used across the country indicates
serious inadequacies. This needs to be taken up seriously by the States and UTs and
also supported at the national level through research, dissemination of good practices.
The use of Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI) and computer-aided learning (which is
being tried out in some States) could be useful tools. NCERT and CIEFL could play
an important role in overhauling English teaching at the primary stage

Changes in Curriculum
It is widely recognised that there is a need to shift focus from memorization of
information contained in the textbooks to developing basic skills and the ability of
students to apply their learning to ‘non-textbook’ situations. Also creativity, problemsolving ability and encouragement for construction of knowledge based on students’ own experiences need to be promoted. But the textbooks in most States contain an information overload with very little scope for students’ involvement. In the absence of appropriate curriculum, syllabus and teaching-learning elements, efforts to focus on the real objectives of learning through teacher training alone do not yield results. The NCF 2005 could form the basis for a review of the curriculum and textbooks in States and UTs.

Involvement of parents and community in outcomes of children learning
The involvement of parents and the community in the issues of learning outcomes of their children would help increase transparency and accountability of the system and also promote the ‘right to learn’ perspective. The expected outcomes for each class, especially at the primary stage, should be shared in a simple language with the community. The performance of students should also be shared with the parents/community. An approach of ‘mobilising’ parents for understanding and demanding quality would be necessary on the lines of the mobilization strategies implemented in the past decade to secure enrolment and regular attendance of children. This should be institutionalized through SSA interventions.

School Libraries
Providing a print rich environment in all primary and upper primary schools is a crucial step towards improving students’ reading ability and habit. A functional school library with an appropriately selected set of books is a must for every school. The library programme must not be confined only to supply of books. Training of teachers and introduction of ‘reading periods’ should be a part of the intervention. It should be ensured that books are given out to the children on a regular basis and not stored away. The involvement of the community would be crucial and mechanisms could be developed for using the school library resource after school hours.

SSA could support a library infrastructure and books grant of Rs.10000 per upper
primary school in the beginning of the plan period and once more (Rs.5000 for books) during the 11th Plan. For primary schools, the grant of Rs.3000 could be provided twice during the 11th Plan period.

Many corporates can start building the libraries

Equity - Educationally Backward Areas, Disadvantaged Groups and Children

There is a consensus that equity is a cross-cutting issue that needs to get considerable attention in the second phase of SSA. It is important to understand the close connection between equity and quality – poor quality, for instance, impacts on equity and poor equity reinforces poor quality. Therefore efforts which are aimed at one must also include the other. The need for a renewed focus on equity can be articulated in the context of four dimensions of disparity / disadvantage that are clearly evident in the elementary education scenario in the country

Category A - Geography:
Large variation between States, districts and blocks with respect to educational infrastructure and outcomes. Thus, basic school level learning conditions, viz. availability of schools, especially upper primary schools, school physical infrastructure and teacher availability. Also significant disparities exist in enrolment rates, gender gaps in enrolment, dropout, survival and repetition rates across States, districts and blocks. The analysis of disparity can be extended to the school level, also where there are large variations in PTRs and school infrastructure, students’ attendance rates and learning achievement levels, now that DISE data enables this. Thus specific districts, blocks and Panchayats that are lagging behind in terms of educational infrastructure and outcomes would need higher focus and resources, financial, administrative and technical.

Category B - Disadvantaged Groups:
Gender and social category gaps in enrolment, completion and achievement levels are
reducing consistently. However, in several parts of the country, the gaps are still high and are
not declining rapdily enough. Gender and social group disparities exist across large parts of
the country, but there are important regional and State-wise differences. There is some
overlap between areas / pockets which are generally educationally backward and those that
have high gender and social group disparities, e.g. parts of Bihar, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh,
South Orissa, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. The disadvantage faced by girls and children
belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes has its basis in cultural and traditional
factors as well as social discrimination and discrimination at the school. Socio-cultural
factors and a history of neglect (in some parts of the country) have also adversely affected the
educational outcomes of children belonging to the Muslim community. Some children
belonging to ethnic and linguistic minorities also face disadvantages in coping with the
regular school system. Thus SC and ST children, children belonging to religious, linguistic
and ethnic minorities who have lagged behind in education would need special focus and
strategies as well as adequate resources in SSA planning and implementation

Category C - Special Categories of Vulnerable Children:
Certain specific groups of children face a severe disadvantage in their participation in
elementary education owing to the specific difficult circumstances in which they and their
families are placed. These include street children in large cities; children working in shops,
dhabas, hotels, garages, manufacturing units, at home for piece-rate work, agricultural child
workers, domestic servants in urban and rural areas; children who migrate seasonally with
their parents including children of construction workers and nomadic tribes etc. The
disadvantage faced by children with special needs is of a specific nature and will be
discussed separately. A significant proportion of children in category C also belong to
socially disadvantaged groups mentioned in category B above. Special strategies are
required for these categories of children within the overall norms of AIE under SSA.

Category D – Girls:
While there has been impressive growth in the enrolment of girls and reduction in gender gaps in enrolment and dropouts between boys and girls, the situation with respect to girls enrolment, transition and completion of the elementary cycle varies across regions and social groups. Thus there is significant overlap between Category D and Categories A & B. Girls belonging to certain social and religious groups face a double disadvantage. While the overall planning & implementation of SSA needs an enhanced gender focus, the interventions targeted to pockets of low female literacy - girls participation in schooling, as also girls belonging to disadvantaged social and religious groups – need to expressly provided for in SSA planning & implementation.

The broad policy framework for the development of education and eradication of illiteracy is provided in the National Policy on Education (NPE) 1986, which had set a goal of expenditure on education at 6 per cent of the GDP. As against this target, the combined total expenditure on education by Central and State Governments was 3.74 per cent of GDP in 2003-04 (BE). The trend of total expenditure on education as a proportion of total government expenditure reveals a disturbing downward trend between 2000-01 and 2003- 04 (Table 10.3). As reported in Economic Survey, 2003-04, a high priority has been accorded to this sector in the Tenth Five Year Plan (2002-07), with an allocation of Rs.43, 825 crore as against Rs.24, 908 crore made available in the Ninth Plan, representing an increase of 76 per cent.

Literacy rates in India increased from 18.3 per cent in 1951 to 64.8 per cent in 2001. However, India continues to lag behind several other developing countries in the region in terms of adult literacy and youth literacy rates (Table 10.5).

Macro Perspective
In 1950, the architects of the Indian Constitution stipulated that by 1960, every child up to the age of 14 years would be provided an education. At present, the date for universal education that is being given is 2010.

Although significant progress in the literacy movement has been made post-1991, even today, over 35 million (3.5 crore) school-aged children are not receiving any sort of education, and more than one out of every three Indian citizens is illiterate. Sadly, one out of every three out-of-school children in the world is Indian.

The total governmental (both central and state) expenditure on elementary education (classes I through VIII) = Rs 21,850 crore per annum.

Over 95% of this money is used for teachers' salaries.

The estimated cost of additional financial resources for universalisation of elementary education is Rs 1,40,000 crore over the next ten years.

Child labour - Consisting of 10-50 Mn. Children - is one of the biggest barriers to Universalisation of Education.

Why Education
Education has a far reaching impact on a number of levels

• Helps create equality among citizens, without regard to origin, gender or religion.
• Helps to establish better nutritional, healthcare and sanitation practices. More specifically, education leads to an increased awareness about reproductive health and the prevention of HIV/AIDS and other endemic diseases.
• Enables people, particularly women, to exercise power of choice within the family.
• Promotes awareness about the dangers of various social evils, crime, terrorism, drug addiction and child labour.
• Helps to increase productivity, employment and economic growth.

There are a couple of critical issues we must address in discussing the Universalisation of Elementary Education.

It is by no means the fault of India's 50 million out-of-school children that they are not being provided education.

However, if we do not provide them with even the most basic education, what will these 50 million children do in the year 2010?

Prof. Amartya Sen on the importance of education in a nation's future:

"...extensive empiricle studies have demonstrated the critical role of basic education in economy and social development in Europe and North America as well as in Asia, Africa nad Latin America..."

"The concentration on education was responsible, to a large extent, for the nature and speed of Japan's economic and social progress..."

"Education has intrinsic importance; the capability to read and write can deeply influence one's quality of life. Also, an educated population can make better use of democratic opportunities than an illiterate one..."

"Women's empowerment through literacy tends to reduce child mortality and very significantly decrease fertility rates..."

-- Prof.Amartya Sen, Nobel Laureate (Extracts taken from his article 'To Build A Country Build A Schoolhouse," NY Times, 27 May 2002).

Resources
Varied Statistical Sources
Inputs from Azim Premji Foundation

indiadonationportal.org