Reform Impulses in a Bipolar Government
This chapter describes the far reaching changes as a result of which the Indian education system ceased to be almost exclusively public funded and closed system, how these far reaching changes were not steered by any policy of the Government, and how the policy has to catch up to do. It describes how the early initiatives of the Manmohan Government aroused great hopes that higher education was poised for remarkable transformation, and how these hopes were dashed as the Prime Minister was only a minor centre of power and could not prevail upon Arjun Singh to accept the ambitious reform agenda drawn up by the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) he set up. It also describes the special focus on skill development and the new initiatives launched during the Eleventh Five Year Plan such as the expansion of Central Universities, IITs, IIMs and NITs, and the launch of Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA). It compares and contrasts the philosophical underpinnings and recommendations of the NKC and Yash Pal Committee on the rejuvenation of Higher Education, and critques the recommendations of that Committee’s idea of university, and its proposal to constitute a National Commission on Higher Education and Research as an imperium imperio.