Quality Education For All

Ever since Goldman Sachs published the now famous BRICS Report which predicts that India could become the second largest economy in the world by 2050, and ever since the columnist and author Thomas Friedman wrote the best selling book The World is Flat, the media has been regularly inundated with stories of how India is poised to reap a historic demographic dividend. The latest census that is underway will further confirm what most of us have known for so long – of all the major nations of the world, it is India that will be home to the youngest population.

As of today, more than two-thirds of India’s population is below 35 years of age. This proportion could increase for the next decade or so till the population growth rate stabilises, reaches a plateau and then starts receding to levels displayed by higher income nations. There is no doubt that this unprecedented huge number of active Indians joining the work force at an increasing rate could do wonders for the Indian economy and society as a whole. But most of us also know that this pattern of population skewed in favour of the young also presents a historic challenge to India. And we have to collectively confront this challenge if India is to succeed in keeping its date with destiny in the form of the demographic dividend.

The challenges that we collectively face as a nation are manifold: the first is to broaden the access to and improve the quality of education from primary schools up to the universities; the second challenge is to reduce the existing huge gap between the males and the in terms of access to quality education. Ever since India became a free country in 1947, we have made remarkable progress in helping the masses to acquire literacy. There have been stirring tales of how children of poor farmers and even landless labourers from distant villages have actually succeeded in entering in IITs and thus upgrading their social stratum. We have also witnessed inspiring tales of how talented children of rickshaw pullers have worked hard against all odds and educated themselves wonderfully, and eventually succeeded in joining the civil services. These examples make it clear that in many ways, India is a meritocracy where aspirations can find a path to success.

Yet, it is also a fact that an uncomfortably large number of Indians have remained functionally illiterate. Going by the recent government statistics, the success that India can be proud of is the fact that more than 65 per cent of the population is literate. On the other, the fact we need to ponder is that about 35 per cent of the Indians – which translates to about 400 million people – remain illiterate. This situation was bad enough when the world was going through an industrial age where blue collar work dominated the labour force. But now, we have already entered the age of information technology where education and skills will play a key role in determining whether you will be employable or not. To that extent, it is crucial that we implement policies that will take literacy levels from the current 65 per cent to at least 95 per cent. More importantly, we must ensure that the quality of the education that we provide is improved in a systematic manner. Many reports have indicated that for various reasons, children who have passed through primary school have not acquired the requisite skills which they should have. For this, we must implement policies that will improve the quality of education right from the level of Class I to doctoral levels. All of us are very proud of the success and recognition garnered by the IT and ITES sectors of India across the world. But what must be done in future is to expand the ambit of this success to all sectors of the economy and to all sections of the society.

The second policy challenge that confronts us has to do with gender, or call it gender discrimination if you will. Compared to the situation that existed when the British left India in 1947, women are in a far better position now. Many of them have broken through the proverbial glass ceilings and have occupied top positions both in the government and the private sector. Even the mind-set in the Indian society has changed a lot with no one raising an eyebrow when women increasingly join the work force and earn a livelihood. But we know that there is much that still needs to be done. The literacy rates of women is far lower than that of males; the gap is even more worrisome in rural India and in certain regions. I would cite Kerala as an example of how higher literacy for the girl child results in dramatic improvements in human development indicators. What has been achieved in Kerala needs to be replicated everywhere else in the country.

I would not say that the challenges are easy. But I would definitely say that we can together surmount them.

(The views expressed by the author are personal)