West Bengal needs a policy of non-discrimination in University Governance

Recently, in the sector of higher education in West Bengal at the university level, certain policies have been enforced by the dept. of higher education of the state govt. which are highly discriminatory in favour of the new Presidency University ( PU ), established about two years ago. The university was set up by the LF govt. and it passed the Act. The LF was replaced by TMC soon thereafter. The TMC govt. appointed a "Mentor Committee" with extreme enthusiasm for creating a 'World Class' university having cutting-edge standards of teaching-learning processes, research, extension, consultancy and all other aspects which could be thought about.  It  got the Act amended and took steps to make PU functioning. While envisaging international standards for the infant PU, the policy makers completely ignored a similar future for 155 yr. old CU, situated next door, which is recognised as "potential for excellence" by UGC and honoured with highest grade by NAAC. The  Jadavpur University which also boasts of similar recognitions by UGC and NAAC was also ignored while doling out  additional support to the faculty of PU to boost performance.

PU was got rid of the Court/Senate and administered by only the Executive Council while Court/senate remains the highest policy making authority for other state-universities. The faculty of PU was selected with   selection processes different from those followed in sister universities ignoring the UGC Regulations which are binding on any University recognised under Sec.2(f) of UGC Act,1956. The faculty were given enhanced salary compensations in each of the three category of posts  and sanctioned   liberal research grants, sabbatical leave, study leave, additional increments  and other benefits which are not allowed to the faculty of other state-aided universities of West Bengal. Incidentally, these service benefits like research promotion grant, study leave,  allowances other than D.A. and H.R.A., sabbatical leave etc. are a  part of the UGC Regulations of June,2010 relating to revised pay scales of college & university teachers and terms & conditions for maintenance of standards in higher education instituitions. The Regulations were duly published in the Gezette of India on Sept.18,2010. The constitution mandates that the UGC Regulations are binding to the states as education is included in the Concurrent List. Inspite of this statutory law, the state govt. has not accepted the Regulations  other than the revised pay scales for which 80% of the fund is paid by UGC during the XI Plan period. However, these provisions  have been implemented for only the faculty of PU who have just a few months of service experience in this nascent university. It is found that the UGC Regulations have been violated in respect of search committee for appointment of vice-chancellors, selection committees for recruitment of teachers among others.

It has been asserted on behalf the HE dept.that the scarce resources be better pumped to a heritage institute to uplift it to international benchmarks rather than making it available to other teachers, some of whom have the capability to generate research grants on their own from funding agencies and bring sanction of big projects. This   contention is readily palpable as weak, thin and frail. Presidency College is certainly an institute of heritage but not Presidency University (PU) which is an infant being just about two yrs.old. An elected govt. can not discriminate among its own universities but it should formulate a policy to sustain development of each and provide additional support to generate a growth-momentum. Let the teachers of PU compete with their counterparts in various aspects of teaching  and research   by utilising their academic strength, skills and talents. The least the state govt. can do is to encourage each university to perform better and excel in a  level-playing field. It can accept the UGC Regulations of June 2010 in full if is is indeed serious about quality assurance. It can, as a general policy, ask the executive councils of state-universities to reward the teachers who have adequate research output, publications and other indicators of performance   by granting additional increments to them as well as to appoint Professors with higher emoluments in line with UGC Regulations to promote leadership of academic departments.     

Several senior and eminent academicians  have  reported in the media the deep resentment, anguish and frustration engulfing the teachers serving in the state-aided universities in West Bengal, many of whom have achieved excellent benchmarks at national anfd international levels by means of research publications and research projects. They think of being discriminated against. This discriminatory policy will severly impact  the growth and development of university-education in West Bengal.  

             Globalization of the Local : A Cultural Perspective.

                                                                   

                                                                                         

From a theoretical perspective, globalization in relation to culture is supposed to promote a world view of multiculturalism and diversity through liberal unrestricted inter-country connectivity, exchanges and flow of information. But to some of the critics, globalisation in reality has turned out to be  the spread of capitalism, market economy, hegemonist trade principles, global brands and consumer products of American or Euro-American dispensions. They point out the inherent tendencies in the policies of globalisation to foster  homogenization of life styles, attitudes and outlooks of people across the board through global brands of consumer goods, fast food chains, shopping malls, retail marts, movie, music, language   (American English ), electronic gadgets and so on which have steamrolled and swamped distinctive lifestyles, traditions, language, craft, dress, food, music or in short, local culture of the communities. These scholars say that globalisation has been manifested as  a type of neo-colonialism perpetuated by  the USA and its allies constituting the G-8 group of nations and in the garb of a WTO regime,  the economic principles favouring these nations have been thrust upon all others, particularly the developing countries without any scope of resistance for self-reliance. To them, globalisation in relation to culture is in fact nothing short of  cultural imperialism propagated by Euro-American economic forces and incorporation of their ideological contents into local cultures through manipulation of the mass media.

However, a careful scrutiny of the situation reveals that globalisation manifests itself in dangers as well as in opportunities. The growth and pattern of development of economies across countries will show how the opportunities have been embraced by many countries through appropriate restructure and readjustment of national economies in the WTO era to thwart the inherent dangers of neo-imperialism.  

 The astounding progress in Information & Communication Technology (ICT) is making it clear that the globalised   world has a great potential to nourish diversity and strengthen local cultures to a degree never seen before. This new potential is due to the remarkable developments in internet and the ICT tools which enable people to interact freely, open chat rooms, be on-line,   upload contents of their culture and creative talents for information of anyone living anywhere in  the world at real time. News reports, videos, photographs, encyclopedias, dictionaries, language, craft which constitute cultural attributes, particularity and distinctiveness can be spread in the world by the upload software. One can write own song, create a  podcast version in any language and share it with the world on some podcast web site. One can make own home video with a cheap webcam and Microsoft Movie Maker that comes free with the PC and upload that as well. Its like the muti-coloured fruits and vegetables on the Italian Pizza, the flat-world platform allows different cultures to season and flavour it as they like.  It now seems no longer inevitable that everyone is going to look, speak, sing, dance and think like an American or European because of globalisation. The forces of globalisation has other attributes too which strengthen local cultures and make it global by preventing the trends of homogenization. Our experience shows that  new forms of communication are propelling people to innovation and creativity. We are witnessing   creation of  a global platform for multiple forms of sharing traditions, concepts, ethos, craft, knowledge, entertainment and  empowering of individuals.

Diversity can now  travel to different corners of the world even without the internet. There is more radio today, more TV, more telephone, more cellphone, more travel, more contacts which enable people to respect diversity.  The internet, satellite TV, numerous ICT softwares,  podcasters and ipods enable   globalisation of  local cultures, art forms, styles, recipes, literature, videos, opinions, customs, languages and so on. It’s a new type of cultural revolution  but driven this time from the bottom up.

Globalisation of the local is manifested in the diaspora communities around the world who use the global media networks to cling to their local mores, news, traditions and communities, no matter where they are living. The demand for local news, information and respect for cultural traditions is the driving force for such developments.   The diasporic market means easy access to international newspapers, TV and radio channels which are completely based on local languages. Google Search Engine  is now available is 120 different languages enabling people to inform themselves easily in their own mother tongue. This is just an instance of not only preservation of local languages but its expansion from local to global.  

The flat world in the globalised environment empowers the forces of darkness as well as those of light. It depends on how we prepare ourselves to utilize the opportunities and  which strategies are adopted to empower human  creativity and share the resources with anyone living anywhere  at almost no cost. An amazing situation  of human fraternity is unfolding.

Antioxidant Properties of Tea : Drink More Tea for better Health  

                                                                                     

                                                                  

Introduction

Evidence is increasingly available from research labs highlighting the role antioxidants play in protecting human beings against  heart disease, stroke and cancers. It has been

proposed that the mechanisms leading to these diseases are promoted by free

radicals and that antioxidants  oppose the action of these molecules. In addition

to the well known antioxidants such as Vitamins C and E, there is growing research

demonstrating the potentially beneficial effects of plant-derived antioxidants like

polyphenols which are  found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, cereals and  in drinks such as tea.

Free Radicals  

Free radicals are unstable molecules that include the hydrogen atom, nitric oxide

(NO) and molecular oxygen (O2). These molecules naturally occur in human body as a result of chemical reactions during normal cellular processes. They can also be formed in response to excess pollution, too much UV sunlight and exposure to cigarette

smoke. In an attempt to stabilise, they attack other molecules in the body potentially

leading to cell damage and triggering the formation of other free radicals resulting

in a chain reaction. Some scientists believe that this type of free radical action has

been implicated in certain chronic and ageing diseases such as cancer, heart

disease, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis, cataracts and Alzheimer’s disease.

Role of Antioxidants

Antioxidants are compounds that help to inhibit the many oxidation reactions

caused by free radicals thereby preventing or delaying damage to the cells and

tissues. Their mechanisms of action include:-

·  Scavenging reactive oxygen and nitrogen free radical species.

·  Decreasing the localised oxygen concentration thereby reducing molecular

   oxygen’s oxidation potential.

·  Metabolising lipid peroxides to non-radical products.

·  Chelating metal ions to prevent the generation of free radicals.

The free radicals cause the following  damages :

·  Oxidising Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, which may increase

    the risk of atherosclerosis.

·  Promoting platelet adhesion, which can lead to thrombosis thereby

    increasing the risk of heart disease or stroke.

·  Damaging the cell’s DNA, which may lead to cancer.

·  Blocking the normal endothelial cell function and vasodilatation in response

   to nitric oxide, a potential mechanism for heart disease and cancer.

·  Triggering inflammation.

·  Impairing immune function.

Some antioxidants are synthesised within the cells themselves (endogenous) and

others need to be provided externally in the diet. Table 1 gives examples of antioxidants with established   activity in the body :

Table 1

Endogenous Antioxidants	Antioxidants provided in the diet
Polyamines Melatonin Oestrogen Superoxide dismutase Glutathione peroxidase Catalase Lipoic Acid Caeruloplasmin Albumin Lactoferrin Transferrin	Vitamin E Vitamin C Carotenoids Polyphenols Copper

Sources of dietary antioxidants

Traditionally dietary antioxidants were thought of as Vitamin E and C and the

carotenoid - carotene. In recent years there has been particular interest in the

antioxidant activity and health benefits of other phytochemicals. Table 2 lists two

examples of phytochemicals and their food sources :

Table 2

Phytochemical	Categories	Sub-category	Food Sources
Carotenoids	Carotene	alpha--carotene	Carrots, pumpkins, avocados
		beta- carotene	Carrots, red peppers, apricots, spinach
	Lycopene		Tomatoes, pink grapefruit, watermelons
	Lutein		Spinach, kale, brussel sprouts
Polyphenols	Flavonoids	Anthocyanins	Berries, red wine, black grapes
		Flavones	Celery, parsley, olives
		Flavonols; Quercetin, Rutin	Tea, apples, onions, wine, garlic
		Flavonols; Catechins	Tea, wine, pears, apples, chocolate
		Flavanones	Citrus fruit
		Isoflavones	Legumes
	Phenolic Acids	Hydroxybenzoic Acid; Gallic Acid, Ellagic Acid, Salicylic Acid	Berries, Tea, Grapes, Walnuts
	Other Phenolic compounds	Capsaicin	Chillies, Peppers
		Tannins	Tea, red wine, grapes

Tea has one of the highest total flavonoid contents of all plants being about  15% of the leaf by dry weight.

Tea Flavonoids

The types and amounts of flavonoids present in tea will differ depending on the

variety of leaf, growing environment, processing, manufacturing, particle size of

ground tea leaves and infusion preparation.  Typically 93% of total tea phenolic

compounds are flavonoids  Green teas contain more of the simple flavonoids

called catechins, while the oxidation that the leaves undergo to make black tea

converts these simple flavonoids to the more complex varieties called theaflavins (TF)

and thearubigins(TR).  

Tea flavonoids are water-soluble and one study  has shown that a cup of   tea

that has been allowed to brew for 40-60 seconds will typically deliver approximately

140 mg of flavonoids whilst other analysis  gives a figure of

125 mg / 235 ml brew. The longer the tea is left to brew, the higher the

concentration of flavonoids.

Tea flavonoids demonstrate antioxidant activity   and while not a replacement for

fruit and vegetables, the antioxidant activity of tea has been compared to that of

fruit and vegetables in a number of studies. One study concluded that at the typical

  daily consumption of 3 cups a day,  tea has approximately the same antioxidant

power as eating six apples. Another study found that one or two cups of tea has

the same ‘radical scavenging capacity as five portions of fruit and vegetables or

400mg vitamin C equivalents.

Health benefits of tea flavonoids

For many years it has been known that the plant polyphenols are antioxidant in

vitro, in fact many common flavonoids are several times more potent than Vitamin C

or E. This growing interest in the antioxidant activity of phenolic compounds has

led to increased research into their potential health benefits ,as already mentioned above.

The antioxidant activity of tea flavonoids may account for the results of a number of

epidemiological studies suggesting that they may have a protective role in

conditions  as noted below :

-Cardiovascular disease.

-Cancer.

-In vitro studies have demonstrated that the initiation stage of cancer can be

prevented by the action of tea flavonoids.

-Tea polyphenols have been shown to inhibit DNA synthesis of leukaemia

cells and lung carcinoma cells.

-Animal studies have shown that tea and its flavonoids protect against

many types of cancer e.g. skin tumors in mice, lung cancer in mice.

and digestive cancer in mice and rats.

-Antibacterial effects.

-Tea extracts exhibit inhibitory effects against Salmonella typhi.

Campilobacter jejuni, Campilobacter coli, Helicobacter pylori, Shigella,

Clostridium, Pseudomonas, Candida and others.

-Dental Caries

-Green tea and various catechins have exhibited inhibitory effects on the

growth of cariogenic bacteria by preventing the adherence and growth of

bacteria at the tooth surface.

Absorption of tea flavonoids 

Until recently the majority of  research demonstrating the antioxidant activity of

tea flavonoids was either using animal models or laboratory cellular studies.

Emerging evidence is concluding that the body does in fact absorb some of these

Antioxidants, e.g., when green tea extract is consumed by healthy human

volunteers, various catechins are found in the plasma in a dose-dependent

concentration varying between 0.2-2.0% of the ingested amount, with a maximum

concentration being achieved 1.4 to 2.4 hours after consumption. Some studies

have shown that plasma antioxidant activity peaks 30-60 minutes after tea

consumption and returns close to baseline by 90 minutes. Further research is

currently being undertaken on the metabolism, distribution and excretion of tea

flavonoids and its metabolites.

The addition of milk to tea, as enjoyed by the majority of people, does

not appear to affect the bioavailabilty of the tea flavonoids.

Conclusion

It is well known that fruit and vegetables are good sources of antioxidants. However,

what is less well known is the amount of antioxidants present in tea. The major

group of antioxidants in tea are flavonoids that appear to be readily digested, absorbed and metabolised by the body. There is a wealth of evidence demonstrating that tea and

flavonoids exhibit beneficial effects in animal and in vitro studies and provide a

promising area of research.

So as well as eating more fruit and vegetables, antioxidant intake can be topped up

by drinking more tea, helping to promote overall health and well-being.

Acknowledgement  : http://www.teahealth4.com and the references cited therein.

Social  Alienation  Redefined

Gone are the days when parents found their children engaged in ‘adda’ with their peers for long hours and felt anxious  that studies were hampered. The elders of various age groups also used to assemble at a ‘theck’ or ‘rock’ chatting and gossiping for hours. The discussions covered anything on the earth, often far off from the respective domains in daily chores. It can not be denied that these interactions created connectedness, understanding, harmony  and  social bonding among persons having huge diversities.

These  face to face ‘adda’ and ‘theck’ are now replaced by walls and posts  as well as chats on social networking sites like Face book  and  Twitter at the click of a mouse. That in this web-platform  the ‘friends’ never get a scope to meet and groom the friendship over a period of time and to know one another is of no concern to the clients. The ‘Confirm Friendship’ click is enough to complete the process.

The social and cultural implications of  networking sites like Face book and Twitter  are becoming a matter of concern in as much as the clients of the network or ‘Friends’ can interact only virtually,  completely cutoff  from the interconnectedness in the real world. Quite often, these friends know each other but they prefer to get connected not in the face-to face ( F2F ) mode but in the virtual mode.  These so-called  ‘friends’   have no interest  to meet and talk.  The number of ‘friends’ keep multiplying at any rate one may wish.

How one can become a friend without knowing each other at personal levels , exchanging experiences and developing a sense of love, compassion and mutual respect is  hardly a matter of debate to these ‘friends’.   But despite  these  demanding ideas and time-tested traditions  which can not be written off , the huge popularity of social networking sites is a fact of life.

These recent developments appear to be a pitfall of ICT-driven globalization.   People, particularly, the most potential segment of the population or the younger generation, are becoming  more individualist, consumerist, non-political, ignorant of  social dynamics and, therefore, alienated from the larger society in which they have to live and thrive. The sense of fellow-feeling , harmony and bonding, be it  within family, locality or the larger society is declining at a fast pace because the people just do not care to think beyond the self. The family bonding which is a distinctiveness and  a significant hallmark of  Indian culture  is disappearing. The grooming of our children in educational institutions are often responsible for the end result. In the name of ICT- based educational pedagogy, the children are taught to turn towards the virtual world of web    and be more comfortable  there far away from hassles of the real world. The society is becoming fragile being crowded with  individualist and selfish elements. Ultimately, the alienation ,  a product  of the new life styles of the so-called Gen Next, is causing psychological disorders  to them because   no one can live without interdependence and social harmony.

The poor ASWATHAMA of the Mahavarata epic was cursed by  LORD KRISHNA telling that ASWATHAMA will become immortal but will never be able to enter into a human society and   will have to live alone in desolate  terrains. The life of ASWATHAMA was miserable. In the 21^st century , the  countries are becoming more and more populated, yet the curse is that more and more people are becoming introverts, distanced from the neighborhood and  living alone.  A mindset of social alienation affects the younger generation the most even though they live in densely populated localities due to inability and indifference to   draw a line between the real and virtual world and resolve the contradictions.

রামগরুড়ের ছানা হাসতে তাদের মানা  /  হাসির কথা শুনলে বলে  / "হাসবো না না না"

Challenges before Indian Higher Education in the era of Globalization.

Globalization essentially means  intensive inter-connectedness among the learners and providers of education, particularly in the domain of higher education including technical and management education in the world as a whole. As a consequence, comparative skills and excellence in the learners  are necessary to interact with the peers and to find a place in the world of jobs. As the interfacing  with  the  Institutions across countries increases, the management of Indian Institutions are required to adjust their policies and governance mechanisms so that the competitive standards are not diluted.

With new regulatory arrangements and focussed action in key areas, as described below, we hope to build a robust higher education system that would sustain rapid economic growth, promote international competitiveness, while at the same time meet the rising

expectations of the young enterprising Indians.

 In India, the challenges in the frontier of higher education are many but speaking broadly, these are two-fold, namely, Access and Quality.

Access

Access needs to be increased significantly because  the GER is quite low. It is about 13% at the end of XI Plan much below the global average of 24%. A holistic and balanced expansion approach is needed to target under-represented sections of society who have traditionally have very low GER. Thrust should be on consolidating and improving the capacity  of the existing institutions. New institutions may be set up to bridge regional imbalances and disparities across disciplines and to address special economic, social and technological needs of the country. Further, traditional education should be supplemented with skill-based studies and institutional differentiation should be encouraged so that institutions grow along their own growth trajectories without being clones of each other. Open and distance education methods could be deployed to augment capacity optimally. In addition, the concept of Meta University aimed at collaborative and multi-disciplinary learning that redefines knowledge-creation and knowledge-sharing in the twenty-first century, could also be explored.

Quality

Regarding quality assurance of education,  there must be a strategic shift  to improvement in quality of higher education. For this, the focus should be not only on larger enrollment, but also on the quality of the expansion. The governance mechanisms should be reviewed and  overhauled for proving strength te curricular work by learning from the good practices of best institutions across India and elsewhere. Several other measures are also needed , for example,

accreditation should be at the core of regulatory arrangements and must have clear incentives and

consequences. This would require multiple strong and independent accreditation bodies. Governance system needs to be revamped by balancing institutional autonomy with accountability and developing institutional leaders. Full implementation of examination reforms, choice-based credit and semester system must be ensured to enhance flexibility and provide greater choice. The affiliated college system should be improved by deploying advanced technology and restructured so that a reasonable number of colleges are affiliated to each university and a ‘hub and spoke model’ established to foster curricular and

pedagogic reforms.

Research

 We need to create an ecosystem that encourages research and innovation in a self-sustaining manner. We must bring back the ‘lost’ research culture of Indian Universities so as to create new knowledge and improve teaching standards. Collaborative research, setting up industry incubation parks in Universities and institutions providing more research fellowships, promoting innovation through interdisciplinary research in new and emerging fields, strengthening Inter-University Centres etc., need to be emphasized. This would require more funding for university-based research and funding policies that create right incentives for quality research and promote collaboration among institutions. Related to this is the issue of faculty shortages which can be tackled through innovative ways such as technology-enabled learning and collaborative information and communication technologies (ICT). A complete overhaul of the Academic Staff Colleges that are used to provide refresher courses for teachers is also necessary.

Initiatives to improve the quality and availability of teachers in higher education need to be launched in a mission mode. 

More Resources and Better Utilization

There is an urgent need to step up both public and private investment in higher education   (including technical education)  and increase in the efficiency of its utilization. About 18.0 % of all government education spending or about 1.12 % of GDP is spent on higher education today. This should be raised to 25.0 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively. An increase of 0.38 per cent of GDP means an additional allocation of about Rs. 25,000 crore to higher education for the Centre and the States taken together.

State Universities

The  State universities and their affiliated colleges that account for more than 90.0 per cent of the

enrollment suffer from severe fund constraints and poor governance leading to poor quality. Strategic central-funding based on State higher education plans should be leveraged to stimulate more state funding linked to academic and governance reforms which may include norm-based funding for State universities and colleges. Allocation of operating budget should be based on objective norms and new investments based on competitive grants and performance contracts. Institutions should be encouraged to raise their own funds through various legitimate means. Reasonable tuition fees in higher education need to be supplemented with appropriate publicly-funded financial aid. The scale and reach of scholarship schemes and student loans need to be enhanced. Government guarantees for student loans could be considered. The central principle should be that no student who is eligible to be admitted should be deprived of higher education for financial reasons.

Enhancing Employability

 There is a need for a clear focus on improving the employability of graduates. Indian higher

education is organized into ‘General’ and ‘Professional’ streams. General education which is an excellent foundation for successful knowledge based careers, often fails to equip graduates with necessary work skills due to its poor quality. On the other hand, professional education is often expensive, lengthy and usually imparted in narrowly specialized private institutions, with little emphasis on liberal arts, which is essential for the development of intelligent able-minded citizens. For both ‘General’ and ‘Professional’ education streams, integrated curriculum with greater flexibility in choice of subjects and innovative pedagogic practices are needed to improve the quality and hence employability. Graduates now require the skills beyond the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic (the ‘3Rs’). Skills such as critical thinking,  communication, collaboration and creativity (the ‘4Cs’) are now important in more and more jobs.

Accordingly, there is need to focus on the ‘4Cs’. Special emphasis on verbal and written communication skills, especially in English would go a long way in improving the employability of the large and growing mass of disempowered youth in a globalised world.

 The Vocational Education and Training sector in the country is small and this limited capacity is

under-utilized due to poor quality and lack of social status. There is an urgent need to develop a large sector offering short-cycle qualifications in the form of associate degrees catering to

intermediate skills in the higher education space within the National Vocational Education Qualifications Framework. Such degrees would carry with them social prestige, would be less expensive and academically.

Encouraging Private Participation

 Private sector growth in higher education (including technical) should be facilitated and innovative Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) should be explored and developed in the Twelfth-Plan. Private higher education accounts for about four-fifths of enrollment in professional higher education and one-third overall. This growth trend is likely to continue in the coming years. Currently, this growth is restricted to specific areas and there are concerns about quality and use of unfair practices. A clear policy is, therefore, required to manage private education and a statutory and transparent framework needs to be established for its operation for driving private growth further in a legitimate and balanced manner. The ‘not-for-profit’ tag in higher education sector should, perhaps, be re-examined in a more pragmatic manner so as to ensure

quality without losing focus on expansion and equity. Deserving private institutions could benefit with access to public funds in the form of loans, financial aid for students and competitive funding for research.

 Partnerships

 Higher education is an increasingly global enterprise; hence Indian institutions should embrace

internationalization that could provide them with new opportunities. Country’s rationale for

internationalization would be to enhance its soft power, improve standards of domestic provision and produce graduates with international competencies and skills. This can best be achieved by having more and more innovative partnerships. Given the historical advantage of India  in higher education (particularly among emerging market economies), the wide spread use of English language and low cost living, India can potentially become a global hub for higher education. We need to provide greater autonomy to our centres of excellence to enter into collaborative partnership with the best universities abroad.

10.34 In sum, with new regulatory arrangements and focussed action in key areas, particularly expansion

and quality improvement, we hope to build a robust higher education system that would sustain rapid

economic growth, promote international competitiveness, while at the same time meet the rising

expectations of the young enterprising