Your edit “Nine of ten, unemployable” (August 15) aptly laments the need for urgent reforms and legislation to govern educational institutions in engineering and management. Over the years, colleges and institutes have been allowed to mushroom rapidly, the attraction for promoters being the lucrative earnings coming from the mad rush on these courses. And the result is there for us to see: pedestrian graduates and even post-graduates who don’t have a grasp of the fundamentals simply because the institutions were ill-equipped to impart quality education in the first place.
It’s a pity that the proposed Bill for making accreditation by an independent rating agency compulsory has been withdrawn. But the silver lining is that, in another development, the University Grants Commission has finalised the regulations through which foreign universities will be able to come to India — only in partnership, collaboration or twin arrangement with local educational institutions. More importantly, only the Top 500 foreign universities will be allowed into India. Hopefully, this will pave the way for quality education in engineering and management.
R Vishvesh Mumbai
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