English हिन्दी
Connect with us

India News

Whither demographic dividend: Largest young population and severely short of teaching staff

Published

on

Whither demographic dividend: Largest young population and severely short of teaching staff

A skilled, educated person with the age and energy of youth is an asset. Without those qualities, a young person can be a problem. Having a huge number of them means serious trouble.

Unfortunately, that seems to be the plight of India, and it has progressively worsened.

India is one of the world’s top five economies and the country with the world’s largest working-age population – around 861 million aged between 15 and 64.

Yet, according to data in a report by India Spend, nearly two-thirds (about 64 per cent) of teaching posts are vacant in India’s central universities (India Spend calculation somehow puts it at one-third).

Moreover, no Indian university – India has 36.6 million university students – finds a place in the global top 100 and the highest rank achieved this year was 420 by Indian Institute of Science, a five-year low. Thus, by global standards, India’s 36.6 million university students get their education in low-grade institutes.

From India Spend:

Global Rankings Of Indian Universities, 2018-19
World Rank Institution National Rank
420 Indian Institute of Science 1
519 Tata Institute of Fundamental Research 2
615 Indian Institute of Technology Bombay 3
651 Indian Institute of Technology Madras 4
671 Indian Institute of Technology Delhi 5
676 Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur 6
726 University of Delhi 7
732 All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi 8
761 Jadavpur University 9
774 Banaras Hindu University 10

Source: Centre for World University Rankings

The report says the situation has worsened over the last four years, when the rankings of Indian universities have steadily declined.

In 2014, the highest rank an Indian university reached was 328, in 2015 it was 341, in 2016, it dropped to 354 and in 2017, it was 397, says the report:

Highest Rank For An Indian University (World Wide)
Year Institution Rank
2018-19 Indian Institute of Science 420
2017 University of Delhi 397
2016 Indian Institute of Technology Delhi 354
2015 Indian Institute of Technology Delhi 341
2014 Indian Institute of Technology Delhi 328

Source: Centre for World University Rankings

(These ranks primarily focus on the quantity and quality of research papers – 55% of the weightage – how many appear in top-tier or influential journals and how many are cited by other researchers.)

A dismal shortage of teaching staff could be the likely reason. Professors play a leading role in conducting academic research, apart from teaching duties. But, says the report, India is short of professors.

Minister of state for Human Resource Development, Satya Pal Singh, gave the following information about the number of posts sanctioned and the number of vacancies in the higher education institutions in the country:

Central Universities: sanctioned posts 17,092; vacant posts 5606;

IITs:  sanctioned posts 8,230; vacant posts 2,802;

NITs: sanctioned posts 7,435; vacant posts 3,235;

Vacancies have been affecting the quality of teaching and research, professors told IndiaSpend. “For the last 15-20 years, universities have been neglected,” said K. Laxminarayana, a professor from the University of Hyderabad. “There have been no teacher recruitments. A majority of the posts are vacant. When there are no teachers in the university, the quality of education will be low.”

Permanent teachers have the “time and responsibility” for research since they are not concerned with job security, Laxminarayana said. But “nowadays, the entire system is made up of contract teachers”.

Professors who do not have a permanent job – called “ad hocs” – find themselves on a contract that can range from four months to a year.

“Recruitments have not taken place for a number of years now,” a Delhi University professor told IndiaSpend on condition of anonymity.

“A lot of teachers have been working as ad hocs. The ministry has not given a nod to the recruitment process. Even if the recruitments don’t take place, the teaching has to go on. So a huge number of ad hoc teachers are hired, who don’t have a sense of belonging to the institution.”

The government said recruitment is controlled by universities, and the ministry and Universities Grants Commission only monitor the process. “Occurring and filling up of vacancies is a continuous process,” India’s HRD minister Prakash Javadekar told the Lok Sabha (Parliament’s lower house) on July 23, 2018. “Universities being autonomous institutions, the onus of filling up of vacant teaching posts lies with them.”

Funding appears to be a key issue in filling vacant teaching posts, said the India Spend report.

“The government says they don’t have enough money to recruit professors,” said Laxminarayana. “So, instead of hiring one permanent teacher, which costs around Rs 100,000 to Rs 150,000, the universities hire three to four contract teachers.”

India spent 4.13% of its GDP on education in 2014, according to HRD Ministry data. This is lower than the UK, US and South Africa–countries that spent 5.68%, 5.22% and 6.05% respectively, of GDP on education. Fifty one of the top 100 universities in 2018-19 were from the US and eight from the UK.

2024 Lok Sabha Elections

Election Commission orders AAP to modify Lok Sabha campaign song

AAP minister Atishi attacked the ECI for putting a ban on the party’s Lok Sabha election campaign song. She said this has happened for the first time in the history of India that the Election Commission has put a ban on the election song of a political party.

Published

on

The Election Commission of India asked the Aam Aadmi Party to modify its election campaign song on Sunday. The Election Commission pointed out that the phrase jail ke jawaab me hum vote denge shows an aggressive mob holding the photo of Arvind Kejriwal showing him behind bars, casts a bad impression of the judiciary. The ECI added that the phrase appears several times in the advertisement which contravenes the provisions of ECI Guidelines and Rule 6(1\(g) of Programme and Advertising Codes prescribed under the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994.

AAP minister Atishi attacked the ECI for putting a ban on the party’s Lok Sabha election campaign song. She said this has happened for the first time in the history of India that the Election Commission has put a ban on the election song of a political party.

The Election Commission listed some of the phrases that it found in violation of codes. The phrase: Tanashahi party ko hum chot denge with the video clip showing the protesters clash with the police (running from 00:21 to 00:23) incites violence. The phrase: gunda gardi ke khilaf vote denge and Tanashahi karne wali party ko hum chot denge running from duration 00:27 to 00:32 Sec with the video clip showing Manish Sisodia being escorted by the police. The words and the video clip shows the police in bad light.

The Election Commision said the phrase: Awazein khilaf thi jo sabko jail me daal dia, bas unko hi bahar rakha jisne inko maal dia. Itna lalach, itna nafrat, bhrastachari se mohabbat shows slanderous remarks and is a criticism of BJP on the basis of unverified facts and also casts bad impression of the judiciary. The Election Commission stated that the phrase Tanashahi party ko hum chot denge with the video clip showing aggressive mob clashing with the police shows criticism of the ruling party based on unverified facts.

Continue Reading

2024 Lok Sabha Elections

PM Modi criticises Rahul Gandhi for allegedly insulting Hindu kings, accuses Congress of not addressing atrocities by Muslim rulers

The prime minister was addressing an election rally in Karnataka’s Belagavi where he said, the statements made by the Shehzada of Congress have been made very thoughtfully to appease their vote bank. But the Shehzada does not utter a word about the atrocities committed by the Nizams, Nawabs, Badshahs and Sultans.

Published

on

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday attacked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly insulting Hindu kings but not saying a word on atrocities committed by Muslim rulers like Aurangzeb. The prime minister was addressing an election rally in Karnataka’s Belagavi where he said, the statements made by the Shehzada of Congress have been made very thoughtfully to appease their vote bank. But the Shehzada does not utter a word about the atrocities committed by the Nizams, Nawabs, Badshahs and Sultans.

Congress does not remember the atrocities committed by Aurangzeb who destroyed thousands of Hindu temples.  He said Congress forms political alliances with parties who praise Aurangzeb. PM Modi said the Congress do not talk about all those who destroyed Hindu pilgrimage sites, looted them, killed Hindu people, and killed cows.

The Prime Minister was referring to a video clip of Rahul Gandhi which was shared by many BJP leaders. In the video clip, the Gandhi is heard saying, during the rule of Rajas and Maharajas, they could do whatever they wanted and even grab someone’s land. The Congress fought for India’s independence and brought democracy in the country.

PM Modi also mentioned the death of a Karnataka Congress corporator’s daughter, who was killed by her former colleague in her college.  He said the Congress government gives priority to appeasement and for them, the lives of daughters like Neha have no value. The prime minister further added that the Congress is only concerned about its vote bank.

Neha Hiremath, daughter of Congress Councillor of Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation Niranjan Hiremath, was murdered on the campus of BVB College on April 18 by her ex-classmate Fayaz. PM Modi accused Congress for supporting anti national parties like PFI (Popular Front of India) for votes which is an anti-national organisation that gives shelter to terrorism and which has been banned by the Modi government.

Continue Reading

India News

Delhi Congress President Arvinder Singh Lovely resigns, says he feels handicapped under Deepak Babaria’s leadership

Arvinder Singh Lovely pointed out many instances when party leaders objected to the way Deepak Babaria, the Congress’s general secretary in-charge for Delhi, conducted the state of affairs. Lovely said that he was under great pressure to expel the leaders who objected to Babaria’s ways.

Published

on

Delhi Congress President Arvinder Singh Lovely on Sunday resigned from his post, citing interference by the party’s general secretary in-charge and alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi as major friction points. In his resignation letter to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Lovely said he felt handicapped and unable to continue as the president of the Delhi Congress unit.

He pointed out many instances when party leaders objected to the way Deepak Babaria, the Congress’s general secretary in-charge for Delhi, conducted the state of affairs. Lovely said that he was under great pressure to expel the leaders who objected to Babaria’s ways. Arvinder Singh Lovely said the Congress’s alliance with the AAP in Delhi for the Lok Sabha elections, which he claimed was opposed by the  Delhi Congess unit.

 Lovely wrote in his letter to the Congress President that the state Congress Unit was against forming an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party which was formed on the sole basis of levelling false, fabricated and malafide corruption charges against the Congress, and in turn, whose half of the cabinet ministers are in jail on corruption charges. He further called the alliance a compromise to improve chances of victory for the Congress.

Arvinder Singh Lovely said while he respected the Congress’s alliance decision with Aam Aadmi party but he was upset by Congress’s North East Delhi seat candidate Kanhaiya Kumar praising AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal. Lovely further said that according to the alliance, the Congress was allotted 3 Lok Sabha seats, of which 2 – North West and North East – constituencies were given to total strangers.

Udit Raj is a Congress-AAP joint candidate in North West Delhi, whereas Kanhaiya Kumar is contesting from the North East seat. Arvinder Singh Lovely said the announcement of Raj and Kumar as candidates had caused an uproar and protests by Delhi Congress leaders and workers within the party.

Continue Reading

Trending

-->

© Copyright 2022 APNLIVE.com