New Delhi: The Minister of Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal said on Wednesday i.e. March 24, 2010, that India needs minimum 800 more universities to enhance higher education. Currently, India has total number of 480 universities.
While attending an education conference organised by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Sibal said that India has a gross enrolment ratio of 12.4 % at the moment, which will be try out to reach 30% in the upcoming years. In other words, mere 12.4 students from every 100 students eligible are to pursue higher education in India. However, India would make an effort to upgrade it to at least 30 for every 100 students in the age group of 18 – 24.
He further added that to lift up the tally, India will need at least 800 more universities along with 35,000 more colleges. In majority of the developed countries, the gross enrolment ratio is above 40% and in some of them have as much as 53%. He also indicated that in the countries having growth rate of 8-9 percent per annum, the demand for efficient manpower is on high. There could be a lack of balance between economy and the manpower that serve the economy until and unless there is an adequate qualified human resource.
The UNESCO has organized this kind of conference consists of parliamentarians of countries such as India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, for the first time.
