Higher education corporation mooted

The Task Force for Higher Education has recommended the establishment of a Karnataka Higher Education Development Corporation with a corpus fund of Rs 200-300 crore.

Speaking to reporters after submitting a 224-page report to chief minister N Dharam Singh, M R Srinivasan, former chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, said that the state government must come out with a long-term strategy on higher education on funding.

"The new corporation not only envisages student financing, but also institutional funding. It should be emphasised in this context that mere provision for pursuing higher education with liberal financial assistance from the state will not empower students with the requisite skills and knowledge. They must be under a rigorous teaching-learning-training regime at institutions with good infrastructure facilities," Srinivasan said.

He added that depending upon the parental income, students could borrow loans with annual rate of interest ranging from 2 per cent to 6 per cent. Women and physically challenged students from all groups should get a rebate of 1 per cent on the interest, he said.

Other key recommendations of the task force include wide-ranging reforms in the examination system, grant-in-aid policy, the granting of autonomy to colleges, governance in universities, research to enhance the quality and relevance of higher education and address issues of equity and gender.

Srinivasan recommended that the Inter-University Board be replaced with the State Council of Higher Education on the lines suggested by the UGC in its 1988 report for strengthening governance in higher education.

To encourage government colleges to pursue autonomy, the task force has also suggested suitable modification of selection and transfer policy of principals and teachers.

It has called for setting up a separate unit in the Directorate of Collegiate Education to promote and facilitate the work of autonomous colleges.

In response to the recommendations made by the task force, Dharam Singh said that these recommendations would be placed before the Cabinet for a detailed discussion.

Singh added that a Cabinet subcommittee would be constituted to study the report and suggest steps to implement it.