Need more funding for better quality & infra in the edu sector
Academicians hope that Budget 2020 will bring more money to the education sector to help improve not only quality but also infrastructure.
MLC from the teaching electoral district of Nago Ganar has been a strong proponent of increasing the budget allocation for education. “We need to spend at least 6 to 8% of GDP on education, without which the standard of the current set-up can not be maintained, forget to upgrade it,” Ganar said.
Madhusudhan Mude, president of the Headmasters Association, said, “What we need to concentrate on is school education because that is the basis for developing quality human capital. Funding is required for the implementation of technology in all schools. “Rajendra Dayma, president of the Independent English Schools Association, said,” Central government should ensure that adequate funding is available for all the schemes it floats. Money for schemes such as RTE etc. must be provided to beneficiaries both on time and at the amount it is supposed to be. “Mohd Shahid Sharif, an education activist, said that comprehensive funding for education is required. “We need to have a comprehensive plan right from early childhood to higher education. The other thing that happens is that you have a lot of funding going to higher education when schools are dying of money, “said Sharif.
Zafar Khan, founder-president of the School Headmasters Charitable Association, said, “At any cost, you can not neglect the upgrade of school education because we need funding to train teachers, develop their skills and implement technology in schools to bridge the urban-rural divide.” Higher education, too, is in desperate need of government support, say academics.
Baban Taywade, a senior academic and former member of the Nagpur University (NU) Senate, said, “Universities depend on quality faculty and infrastructure. And these can only happen if the government provides a steady stream of support. We need to open more government education institutions as private ones are extremely costly, “Taywade said.
Former NU Registrar and renowned academic Mahesh Yenkie says the faculty is the key. “The absence of a faculty is apparent in many colleges, and that’s where the problem begins. We need a professional staff at the helm that the government needs to support. If you have a top-class staff, quality research and development (R&D) would follow, “said Yenkie.
Sanjay Charalwar, former director of Mohota Science College and member of the UN Senate, said, “There is an urgent need for infrastructure funding. Once you develop word-class institutes and facilities, an ecosystem of excellence is developed. Additionally, the wages of all teachers should be equal and well paying. Funding for regular training is also required.
