Higher and Technical Education Minister Neera Yadav on Tuesday said that the quality of education should not be compromised in order to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER).
She was speaking at a meeting held to discuss the measures for bringing Jharkhand at par with other states in higher education and to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) upto 32 percent by 2022.
Notably, GER of Jharkhand in higher education is 8.1 per cent in comparison to the national GER which is 19.4 per cent. The present status can be improved by improving teacher student ratio, strengthening infrastructure and addressing other vital problems.
The Department Secretary Ajay Kumar Singh alongwith Vice-Chancellors of all the five varsities, including the college principals and other representatives attended the meeting.
Principals from different colleges present in the meeting brainstormed on few major agendas which included running classes in second shift, appointment of trained and qualified teachers to meet the staff crunch in colleges, Wi-Fi facility at college campuses, including enhancement of computer labs and establishment of language labs.
“At present, we need to focus on imparting quality education. In order to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio, the quality of education should not be compromised. There are problems in online-offline mode of admission procedure, strengthening the existing infrastructure. However, it can only be sorted out with each other’s cooperation. Soon, approximately 30 colleges of five different universities will be lashed with Wi-Fi facility in first phase,” said the Higher and Technical Education Minister. The minister will also conduct a meeting with the Jharkhand Academic Council (JAC) officials on the issue of separating the intermediate sections from the degree colleges soon. “Within three months, teachers will be appointed in all the high schools for different subjects. The department is making constant efforts to fill the vacant posts. Separating intermediate sections from colleges will be decided at the earliest,” added Yadav.
“If there are no NET qualified teachers, Ph.D holders too can be considered for teaching for the time being. Besides that, if JPSC is not addressing the problem of teachers’ recruitment, University Service Commission will be established soon. Classes must be conducted in two shifts. Girls will attend the classes in first shift to ensure regularity. To complete the syllabus, colleges must conduct classes on Saturdays and Sundays also,” said Higher and Technical Education Secretary Ajoy Kumar Singh. To meet the demand of students in higher studies, RU VC, Ramesh Kumar Pandey in the meeting requested the Principal of St. Xavier’s College, Ranchi to establish another branch of St. Xavier’s College in the capital city. “Approximately, 45 thousand students apply for different courses every year. looking at the demand, a women’s college has been established in lohardaga on PPP mode. A new college too has been established at Simdega. As far as, GER is concerned, data is not being uploaded on time by several constituent colleges and this is one major hindrance,” added Pandey.
