Of Grades and Graduates

Higher education has made a significant contribution to economic development, social progress and political democracy in independent India. Nevertheless, there is serious cause for concern at this juncture. The opportunities for higher education in terms of the number of places in universities are simply not adequate in relation to our needs. Large segments of our population simply do not have access to higher education. What is more, the quality of higher education in most of our universities leaves much to be desired. The National Knowledge Commission (NKC) believes that an emphasis on expansion and reform of our school system is necessary to ensure that every child has an equal opportunity to enter the world of higher education. These concerns about the higher education system are widely shared. There is a clear, almost unanimous, view that higher education needs a systematic overhaul, so that we can educate much larger numbers without diluting academic standards. Indeed, this is essential because the transformation of economy