HRD Minister Urges Institutes to Increase Female Students Intake

Tiruchirapalli: Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Kapil Sibal has urged the educational institutes to increase the intake of female students. On Tuesday i.e. January 4, 2011, while interacting with students and academicians, Sibal asserted that educational institutes are equal for both students.

Mr Sibal said that women also participate equally in the life of the nation. The central government has given an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) to Tiruchirapalli, which is going to be as much for girls as it is for boys.

He also said that private colleges and universities will have to collaborate with the government educational bodies to ensure adequate places of learning for the country''s future educational needs. Moreover, when asked about the Central Government''s role in increasing the number of universities as advocated by the National Knowledge Commission, Sibal said the (Central) Government alone could not start 800 to 900 new universities.

He informed that the state government should start universities and encourage public-private partnership in starting new ones. He said that the National Accreditation Authority for Higher Education Institutions Bill, 2010, would ensure quality. He also mentioned that once this bill, along with the Foreign Education Providers Bill 2010, and the National Commission for Higher Education and Research Bill was passed, a broad framework could be evolved for expanding the gross enrolment ratio to 30 per cent by 2020.

Furthermore, he informed that of the total of Rs 219 crore levied from 119 licencees as liquidated damages for not rolling out telecom services, a sum of about Rs 73 crore had been realized so far. In addition, Sibal, who is also the Telecom Minister, said, that the process for arriving at a new telecom policy in a year's time would be initiated in the next few months.