New Delhi: On Friday i.e. March 12, 2010, the Union Government announced in the 11th Five Year Plan that chances are high of an increase in the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education to 15 percent of the population in the age group group of 18-24 years, by 2011-12.
D. Purandeswari, Minister of State for Human Resource Development, while replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, said that this initiative of the centre requires a substantial increase in the number of institutions and consequently, would require an adequate number of teachers for imparting education. Further, she also added that failure to redress the faculty shortage would hamper the achievement of the targets for increase in GER set out by Government.
Ms Purandeswari also informed members that Government has taken measures to attract talent into the academic profession by liberalizing pay and other incentives at levels higher than that provided to the All India Civil Services (Group 'A') at the entry stage. Moreover, the age of superannuation has been increased to 65 years for persons engaged in teaching in higher education institutions.
Moreover, Government has constituted a Task Force under Prof. Sanjay Dhande, Director, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, to assess the existing faculty shortage and the requirement of quality faculty in technical, professional and University education considering the need to achieve the targeted GER in the remaining period of the 11th Plan and the 12th Plan. Government has also asked the committee to suggest remedial policies and other measures to meet the estimated shortfalls in quality faculty.
