Sir — This refers to the article, “Cheating India of its future” by JS Rajput (April 3). In a competitive world, corruption has an important say in all walks of life. Education and recruitments are no exception. Those who can cheat, pass examinations for sure; and those who can pay, get employment. I agree with the views of the writer that “India needs short-term initiatives and a long-term strategy to reverse the decline in academic and professional values and save the young manpower of the nation. Or else, the country’s demographic dividend will be sadly wasted”. A degree is a must for securing a job — and to get married too! So people resort to dubious means to secure degrees and jobs.
Our education system has been awaiting a course correction for over 60 years. It needs to be overhauled. Open-book examination and the ability of students to grasp concepts and their skills should be evaluated at the school level. There must be a system where those who have cheated at school or college levels do not get an upper hand in later stages of their professional career.