C. A. Ashok Kumar Gadiya, Chancellor, Mewar University

1. What according to you are the various challenges faced by the education sector in India?

Ans: The education sector in India, especially at the University level, has been mainly run by central and state government run universities and institutions. The entry of the private sector in higher education started with the liberalization of the Indian economy. The main problems/challenges faced by private universities are related to funding for the educational infrastructure and finding the right people to run the courses that are job oriented. Students are now very demanding. They want a job immediately after completing their course, which I think is fair. This calls for a job-oriented and industry-driven curriculum.

2. Please suggest few ways to overcome these problems.

Ans: With globalization of the Indian economy, the demands in the higher education sector are varied: the research needs to be state of the art and the new workforce needs diverse skill sets. So the responsibility of training the 21st century workforce will have to be in part shouldered by the private sector. India has now many private universities. Many private institutions have earned international reputation for quality and standards. The way forward is to encourage the participation of private sector without compromising either on the social objectives or the quality standards. The government needs to play the role of a facilitator.

3. What is your view on the assessment of Academic Institutions and Universities by an independent body?

Ans: Like I said earlier, the quality benchmarks have to be maintained. The government already has many bodies like the UGC, the AICTE and the NAAC to set the benchmarks and observe whether the educational standards are being maintained or not. So an assessment is always welcome, be it by a government body or an independent body. The education sector in India, especially at the University level, has been mainly run by central and state government run universities and institutions. The entry of the private sector in higher education started with the liberalization of the Indian economy. The main problems/challenges faced by private universities are related to funding for the educational infrastructure and finding the right people to run the courses that are job oriented. Students are now very demanding. They want a job immediately after completing their course, which I think is fair. This calls for a job-oriented and industry-driven curriculum.

4. The education sector in India is struggling with shortage of faculty. How can it be overcome?

Ans: As I said earlier also, trained and qualified teachers, who can produce students who will be immediately employable in the industry, are in short supply. We need to have close interaction with the industry bodies and collaborate with them in running courses which will be in sync with industry requirements. Similarly, for research also we need to have collaboration with research bodies to promote high standard research.

5. It is said that entrepreneur education and entrepreneurship are the need of the hour. How can we promote them in India?

Ans: Our University has planned various industry-specific courses in collaboration with reputed Industrial Training Institutes, working in Government and Private sectors. We have also devised a unique teaching methodology where industrial training in a training institute for 21 to 45 days and industry attachment for one complete semester for all the students have been made compulsory. So students with ambitions to turn into an entrepreneur can always make the best of the opportunity we provide.

6. Employability skills of Engineering and Management s are a cause of concern. How can it be improved?

Ans: I reiterate that we impart on-the-job training and practical exposure as an in-built feature of the curriculum. Industrial training in a training institute for 21 to 45 days and industry attachment for one complete semester for all the students have been made compulsory. Besides, we also have Personality Development Programmes to help students grow into a qualified and sought-after professional, be it in Engineering or Management.

7. What is the USP of your university?

Ans: We are committed to develop in each student the spirit of nationalism, socialism and a sense of pride of being an Indian. In addition, all our courses are run on curriculum in sync with industry requirements. Our goal is to reap the fruits of research by advancing fundamental knowledge and contributing to better public policy, improved health infrastructure and economic prosperity.

8. What is the future plan for the quality education in India?

Ans: With liberalization and globalization of the economy, there has been a shift in the cornerstones of higher education in India. Many forces are playing on the landscape of Indian education. The private universities are vying with government universities. Foreign universities are also coming in. We see a slow but decisive shift in students’ perception that quality education is also available through private universities at all levels. Of course, the shift is not without challenges, but it will transform the educational ecosystem in the country.