While Government regulations in education are needed, the interference at every stage in private institutes will not only hamper the quality of education in the country, but also severely impede their growth says, JR SHARMA
The recent legislation by the Haryana Government on regulation of admissions and fixation of fees of private educational institutions, universities and deemed universities will deliver a crippling blow to the quality backbone of private universities and institutions in the State and severely impede their growth. It is not a new finding that Government-controlled and run services are mostly poorly managed, unviable, and a burden on the exchequer. Strict regulatory controls by the Government will, therefore, subject private, progressive educational institutions to the same fate as the Government-run services.
Autonomy in decision making in every aspect of institution building is central to an institution’s growth and progress, particularly so when the private institution has been raised entirely by sponsors’ resources. The Government interventions are indeed unnecessary and uncalled for, as they would simply work as stumbling blocks in the institutions’ well-chartered path of progress. A mere legislation providing recognition to a university, which ordinarily should be part of the Government’s primary responsibility can’t entitle the Government to bear so heavily on a private institution or a university that it loses its independence and control to the Government. So, why does the Government choose to regulateIJ The obvious intention appears to be to bring social equity and accessibility to higher education to the common person at reasonable cost.
While the purpose is indeed fundamental to social justice, the means to achieve this through tough regulatory measures, requiring the private institutions to bear the entire cost of a Government’s philanthropic decisions, unmindful of the concerns of the institutes, is indeed flawed, unfortunate, and without any application of mind. Private institutions would require matching government funds to effect any reduction of fees or grant of scholarships. A window provided for NRI admissions on higher fees is too narrow and ineffective to offset the reduction of tuition fees and grant of scholarships and fee concessions.
A stuttering economy made worse by high interest borrowings, is already enough disruption for cash-strapped, unaided private universities and institutes, which rely for growth primarily on the revenue generated from tuition fees. Since private, unaided institutions must perform to stay relevant and compete with Government institutions, almost entirely aided by government funds, their finances are already stretched to the limit.
Most of these institutions have put all their interest borrowings and invested all their earnings into raising physical and academic infrastructure. The governing bodies in almost all these institutions have raised their institutions brick by brick, managing every single resource to optimise outcomes. Why should Government then be allowed to undo years of toil in institution building and bring in an arbitrary and uncalled-for legislation, taking the fee and admissions in their own handsIJ
It is pity that private institutions, the prime stakeholders, learn of Government policy decisions directly affecting them from the media or through legislation thrust upon them without taking their concerns into consideration. Often a meeting is called to hand over the government decision, as a fait accompli. The institutions are made to grant fee concessions and scholarships to domicile students of the state without any system for reimbursement of expenses by the government. If concessions are not reimbursed, it will not only bring down the growth and academic standard of the institutions to an abysmal level, but also become unsustainable.
Quality education does not manifest by itself. It takes years of planning and sustained hard work. For private entrepreneurs, it is an even more painstaking effort to build institutions. Sometimes, for several decades they simply get to plough back their only source of revenue — fee collections from students - into building academic infrastructure, fully aware that quality education is the only option for them to survive and sustain themselves, or else perish in mediocrity. It is time that private educational institutions receive the due attention, support and autonomy they need to grow and thrive, with minimal or no interference from the Government.
The affected institutions stand together and appeal to the Government to make amends, failing which, they must move the appropriate courts in the country with a strong plea to strike down the controversial legislation, which is not only against private institutes and universities, but against the national interests for promoting quality higher education in the country.
(The writer is deputy registrar, ITM Univesity)