The latest All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) report by the Union Education Ministry is a mixed bag. There is good news, and equally, there are areas of concern that need to be addressed as quickly as possible. The good news is enrolment in higher educational institutions has now reached 4.5 crore, and more than before, the participation of women and marginalised communities has improved. This is of special significance given the widening chasm between different sections of society on the one hand and between genders on the other and the deepening worry about the marginalised and the disadvantaged being left behind in the country’s development story. The systemic and ideological reasons include deep-seated economic inequities, regressive classist thinking and patriarchal practices. Together, these factors have resulted in lower enrolment rates and subsequently higher dropout rates. It is heartening to note that the government’s affirmative action and women-centric welfare schemes have had a discernible impact, and it is evident that authorities cannot rest on their laurels, as more needs to be done.
When it comes to the nation’s gender story, while the increase in overall enrolment shows women account for nearly half of the undergraduate student cohort and significantly more in post-graduation courses, compared to males, female enrolment in certain disciplines and professional courses is relatively lower and needs to be addressed. These developments are not limited to education but signify a progressive shift in societal norms and attitudes towards women and their education and overall mobility and development. Moreover, behind these positive indicators hide certain distortions associated with rural and urban poverty, lack of family support, and barriers relating to access to toilets and other facilities.
Students belonging to economically and socially disadvantaged sections of society face several daunting challenges in pursuing higher education. While the gross numbers are on the rise, indicating a shift towards diversity and inclusion, many youth are being adversely impacted by the increasing cost of education beyond tuition fees. Many of them strive for quality education and the status associated with private institutions, but they continue to be out of reach. These bastions of upper-class and dominant-caste privilege need to initiate diversity policies. A related problem is not creating an enabling, nurturing environment and safe space in these institutions, which periodically report suicides by Dalit and other vulnerable students. In this context, the UGC Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations met with severe and fierce resistance to initiatives to curb caste-based discrimination in colleges and institutions.
Lastly, the gains in the field of higher education are being overshadowed by the higher rate of unemployment among the graduates and post-graduates. The culprit is the obsolete curriculum that lacks practical, hands-on, industry-related, job-oriented skills. The government and the industry, too, have not grown enough to generate jobs that are well-paying and secure. As a result, thousands of youth are being driven to the informal and the so-called gig economies. Even those who manage to land a job are both underpaid and underemployed. The efforts of the government have not been adequately successful. The much-publicised flagship scheme PM Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana and the PM Internship Scheme have been dogged by problems relating to implementation, shortage, underutilisation and misuse of funds, and procedural hurdles.