When education was in the news for all the wrong reasons

After parents,activists and students’ unions organised hunger strikes,protest marches and various discussions with education ministers of state boards,much to the relief of parents,Rajendra Darda announced that an Education Fee Regulation Bill had been prepared,which will be introduced on the first day of the next financial budget session and will be brought into effect from the next academic year.

The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) also did away with the toppers’ list of the HSC and the SSC examinations from this year to reduce pressure on students.

Toppers belonging to six categories,including state and divisional toppers,will not be announced from this year. Also,to ensure that students get ample time to prepare for their board examinations,the MSBSHSE announced that the tentative time-table for the exams will be made available to the students at the beginning of the year.

A positive step that the state government took was that of setting up three committees for revamping the higher education sector. The first committee under the chairmanship of Anil Kakodkar will look at the overall changes to be brought in.

The second under the chairmanship of Arun Nigvekar will revise the Maharashtra University Act and the third under the chairmanship of Ram Takawale will bifurcate the University of Pune.

The year also saw protests by FTII students against the Hewitt report’s proposal to privatise the institute with the aim of upgrading it to international standards.

After the uproar by students,the institute decided to drop the proposal and reached the conclusion that the institute will prepare a fresh detailed project report (DPR) for its revitalisation and upgradation with guidance from a group of experts (GOE) nominated by the council.

…and wasn’t
BEST OF 5: Even if the Maharashtra government declared the best of 5 policy for junior college admissions,the rule could not be implemented completely because of the legal battle following opposition from the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) students.

FEE HIKE FOR UoP’s UNAIDED COURSES: The proposal of 30 per cent fee hike for the university’s unaided courses did not take place this year as the members felt a more studied approach was needed to recommend fee hike.

NO CLARITY ON RTE: The state government has yet not provided clarity regarding the Right to Education Act,as schools,teachers and parents remain confused about it. The government has not been able to provide any concrete structure explaining what the Act really means.