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The Higher Education Commission of India: Where the mind is with fear

True academic freedom is key to economic development and a truly egalitarian society and is possible only under an independent, publicly funded higher education system. The HECI Bill is deliberately oblivious to this truth and seems to be driven by a brahmanical, corporate agenda of excluding and profiteering, writes Lokesh Kumar

The government has announced its intent to replace the University Grants Commission (UGC) with the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI). There have been many arguments for and against the HECI Bill.  A few academicians believe that this will address the irregularities present in higher education. However, many feel the Bill opens up higher education to market forces, leading to its privatization. Supporters of the Dalitbahujan cause believe that giving more power to institutions like UGC means nothing more than giving them a free hand to establish upper-caste dominance. With the UGC at the helm, neither have we done any quality research, nor have we found a place at the world stage in the field of education. On the pretext of autonomy, higher education institutions have given short shrift to calls for social diversity on campuses. With the intervention of Parliament, the other backward classes (OBC), which form the largest segment of the population, have been granted access to higher education, but even today, obstacles remain at numerous levels, which could still keep them out. Many Dalitbahujan intellectuals also fear HECI paving the way for saffronization of education.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE: The Higher Education Commission of India: Where the mind is with fear

 

 

 

About The Author

Lokesh Kumar

Lokesh Kumar worked in the IT industry for a number of years after studying engineering and business management. He is now putting together a website that will be a resource for Indian Civil Services aspirants.