CHENNAI: “The nation is rapidly moving towards a capitalist society, and India’s democracy remains flawed. The need of the hour is universal education as a corrective measure for which 6-7% of GDP should be spent on education,” said Chancellor G Viswanathan, Vellore Institute of Technology, during VIT’s 2024-convocation in Chennai on Saturday.

Viswanathan, also the founder of VIT University, highlighted the challenges facing India’s higher education system, noting that in a nation of 145 crore people only about 10% are graduates.

“Higher education in India is largely funded by parents, which has contributed to the country’s lagging educational progress, with a Gross Enrollment Ratio of just 27%,” he pointed out. As per the Kothari Commission’s recommendation 50 years ago, 6% of India’s GDP should be allocated for education. But in 2024 we spend only about 2.7%. In contrast, Japan spends around 7%, the US and China spend 6% respectively, and Germany spends 5% on education.”

In his convocation address, Union Minister of Coal and Mines G Kishan Reddy, said with the country’s ambition to become a $5trillion economy, the demand for skilled professionals was increasing. “So, graduates must not only be job seekers but also job creators,” he added.

Earlier in the day, new buildings were inaugurated in the campus. Of the total 3,056 students who took part in the convocation, 2,144 were undergraduates, 817 were PGs and 95 received their PhDs.