Pointing the government towards further reforms and expansion in higher education, President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday called for a major overhaul of the sector in the country.

He also asked Indian universities to offer quality education that meets international benchmarks.

Speaking at the convocation ceremony of a private university in Chennai, the President stated that as the country stands at the threshold of XII plan, higher education needs a systematic re-look so that India can educate larger numbers without diluting academic standards.

“The objectives of reform and change in our higher education system must be expansion, excellence and inclusion. It is essential that a transparent framework for better service delivery be established in the field of private education,” Mr Mukherjee said.

He pointed out that the shortage of faculty is a matter of serious concern and suggested that innovative teaching methodologies should be used to overcome the handicap.

The President asked the universities to improve
standards of teaching, which meet international standards.

“We must change the reality of our universities not figuring in the list of top 200 universities of the world. Indian universities should aim at becoming top educational institutions in the world with global standards of research, teaching and learning,” Mr Mukherjee said.

He stated that it was important that the private sector also contribute to higher education in India.

“With unlimited demands and limited resources it is important that the private sector also contributes its potential for furthering the cause of higher education,” the President said.
“Many top universities, including Harvard, Yale and Stanford, are the result of efforts of the private sector. There is no reason why Indian private sector cannot achieve similar results,“ he said.

Mr Mukherjee suggested that the private universities should look beyond placements and must satisfy citizens that they are taking up the cause of education in public service and not for private profit.

The President pointed out that the quality of human resources was the most important requirement for country’s economic progress and added that more universities were needed to fulfil the demand for higher education.