When late Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao was in power at the Centre, the word was Manaavadu was there at the helm of affairs. He became the first premier from South India. Same way Daggubati Purandeswari is at the helm of affairs as Minister of State for Human Resource Development (Higher Education). She is also scaling the ladder of success by her vision in education and raising social issues in Parliament.
Purandeswari firmly believes Education is not only a goal in itself but is also a powerful driver of social change. She recently said, “Indian education needs rating agencies like Crisil that can rank colleges by performance.” If sources in Ministry of Human Resources are to be believed then a decision is expected sometime this month. Already, a National Assessment and Accreditation Council for universities exist. But, as accreditation is not essential, only 148 of the 480 universities and 3,941 of the 22,000 colleges in the country have an accreditation. She wants all educational institutions to be rated to assess their performance.
The minister agrees that there was a 25 to 35% shortage of qualified teachers and the Centre was trying to make teaching profession more attractive with higher salaries. She said there was a proposal to involve teachers in framing the curriculum. To tackle the problem of unemployment after pursuing higher education, the minister and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh have urged the Department of Skills Development to find a solution.
The coming year belongs to the education sector and if not regulated, chances of incompetent persons raising funds for setting up technical education institutions are high and this is where grading could help, feels Purandeswari.
With an eye on employment opportu-nities, new courses were being introduced and others upgraded in polytechnics, the minister said. Under the banner of IGNOU, currently 154 community colleges were functioning and there is a move to start a community college with two year courses in skills development, Purandeswari said.
Speaking about Deemed Universities, she said a
committee had been appointed to formulate governing norms. While coming to the Foreign University Bill, the minister said the government was taking a cautious approach to avoid the entry of fly by night operators.
Elected to the 14th Lok Sabha from Bapatla parliamentary constituency in 2004, the young lawmaker raised several issues relating to agriculture, education, public health, science & technology, mother-child welfare, natural calamities, and the problems faced by weavers and artisans in the country. In 2009, she contested from Visakhapatnam parliamentary constituency and became victorious with a huge margin.
Daughter of illustrious father NT Rama Rao, Purandeswari has actively participated in debates on various bills such as Domestic Violence Bill, Hindu Succession Amendment Bill, and the Bill on the establishment of special courts exclusively for trying women-related cases.
The minister has authored a book ‘In Quest Of Utopia’, comprising 82 of her glorious speeches delivered on national and international fora to brighten the lives of people.
To her credit, Mayor David Kelly and council members of the city of Colleyville, Texas have passed a proclamation declaring September 27, 2009 as Purandeswari day at the luncheon organised by North America Telugu Society (NATS).
On the invitation of Laura Bush, she has addressed the White House symposium on Advancing Global Literacy.
She has received appreciation from all quarters. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that he was proud of her and she was an asset in his Cabinet. Former Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chattarjee said Parliament had found a good orator.
However, former minister for HRD Arjun Singh said that though Purandeswari was the Minister of State, the entire HRD Ministry depended on her. Noted Agricultural Scientist Dr. M.S. Swaminathan added a feather in her cap by stating that had she been the Minister for Agriculture, the country would have been enormously benefitted.
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