[Assam] In Support of an Engineering College at Dhemaji- Dr Uma Kanta Sharma (The Sentinel, 17.06.2007)

Sat Jun 16 19:57:28 EDT 2007

          In Support of an Engineering College at Dhemaji

Dr Uma Kanta Sharma

I f a country is to prosper, there should be equal and 
simultaneous development in all the regions of the 
country. India is a vast country and the Government of India should take steps cautiously so that not a single State is deprived of getting equal opportunities. But some sort of disparity is seen in case of northeastern States. The people of this region have to raise their voice for fulfilment of some basic demands like higher technical institutions, new universities, engineering colleges etc — but their cries never bear fruits. The question is: Why this disparity? Is it the parliamentarians (from the Northeast) who cannot properly establish the demand or is it the State governments that could not convince the Centre with data base information? 
Coming to Assam, during the Assembly Session last time, as soon as a declaration came from the Central Government that a new engineering college would be established in Assam, a tug of war started inside the Assembly among our representatives regarding the site selection for the proposed engineering college. It is most unfortunate and ridiculous. Site selection should not be a political game; here the sentiments of people are associated. A site selection committee has already been constituted. Demands started flowing from different corners of the State for the site. When the people of Dhemaji first raised their voice urging the government to establish the proposed engineering college at Dhemaji, then the people from other few districts also demanded the same for their respective areas. 
Do these people, who are opposed to Dhemaji being the site for a new engineering college, want this district to remain as a ‘‘zero industry’’ district or a backward district forever? The Government of India has already identified this district as a backward district out of 200 districts of the country. Is it not the responsibility of the Government of India as well as the Government of Assam to give some sort of a lift to this State in the field of development? True, the Government of India has identified this district with a view to pull it to the rank of other developed districts of the country. So in this context there should not be any debate regarding site selection; all should understand the sentiments of the people of Dhemaji.
After the completion of the ongoing Bogibeel Bridge, NH-52 and Railway broad-gauge link work, Dhemaji will be one of the important districts of Assam. Previously, the Government of Assam gave very little importance to this district due to lack of infrastructure facilities, but now that chapter is also closed. No more now does Dhemaji remain a flood-affected district. So, being a zero-industry and a zero-technical-institute district, the demand of the people of Dhemaji for an engineering college is not unjust; rather it is genuine. These people never thought that the establishment of an engineering college at Dhemaji would solve their unemployment problem, but today they feel that along with the college, the infrastructure potentialities will be maximized, many small-scale industries may develop, and they will get better means of earning their livelihood.
Another important point in support of the institution to be started at Dhemaji is that there are a whole lot of untapped land resources in the district, which may contribute a large amount of revenue to the institution in particular for self-sustenance. The UGC has already instructed to all the higher institutions for the generation of their own resources. In this case, certainly these untapped resources may play a significant role. Sam Pitroda, chairman of National Knowledge Commission (NKC), in his letter to the Prime Minister is on record saying: “Most public universities are sitting on a large reservoir of untapped resources in the form of land. It should be possible to draw up norms and parameters for universities to use their available land as a resource of finance”. The NKC in its recommendation for establishment of new 50 National Universities stated that “each university may be endowed with a substantial allocation of public land, in excess of its spatial
 requirements. The excess land can be a subsequent source of income generation.” 
This apart, at the completion of the mega power project (200 MW) of the NHPC at Gerukamukh, Dhemaji will certainly have a stronger point in support of the establishment of a new engineering college in the district. The people of Dhemaji have not forgotten the political betrayal when the then proposed veterinary college at Dhemaji was shifted to North Lakhimpur.
It is not wise to make issue after issue on this subject. If we go on fighting over ‘‘whether Dhemaji or not’’, our differences will go on increasing; and that will not augur well for the State as a whole. If an engineering college is established in Dhemaji district, it will be not be a property of Dhemajians alone; it will be a property of the State as a whole. We hope the learned site selection committee will analyse all the parameters thoroughly, impartially, non-politically and give a judicious decision in this regard. 

(The writer is Head, Department of Botany, Dhemaji College, Dhemaji) 

  (The Sentinel,17.06.2007)

Buljit Buragohain <buluassam at yahoo.co.in> wrote:
    In Support of Quality Higher Education in Northeast 
Dr Uma Kanta Sharma
     Today India is one of the largest scientific and technical 
powers in the world. This has resulted in capability 
building in almost all sectors of the Indian economy. No doubt, it is a matter of pride for us but it is further observed that socio-economic progress in India is not directly proportional to the vast educated and trained manpower. There is lack of value-based education in the higher institutions. Add to this fact that rural sectors are given less priority for socio-economic development. As a matter of fact, the proportion of our population in the relevant age group (17-21) that enters the world of higher education is only about 7 per cent.
Some critical reviews were conducted by the New Education Policy in 1986 and this has assumed importance in view of the adoption of new economic policy in terms of free import of technologies for various types of industries in India.
The present academic sector is under great stress because of the reluctance of the students in attending the non-productive institutions and lack of value-added and job-oriented education. As such, there is an urgent need for the reorientation of the education system. 
Technical education is an innovative and enterprising practice in the 21st century, encompassing value-oriented education as an integral part of general education. But we lack honest implementation of the policy/planning exercises since it involves a large sum of money. The need of the hour is the creation of a technology base in India. Unless we innovate, we will have to pay more and more for our next generation of technology in order to qualify our products for the global market.
Nobody can deny that higher education has made a significant contribution to economic development, social progress and political democracy in independent India. Sam Pitroda, Chairman, the National Knowledge Commission (NKC), a high-level advisory body to the Prime Minister of India, has rightly stated that the opportunities for higher education in terms of the number of universities are simply not adequate in relation to our needs. An overhaul of the education system is essential because the transformation of economy in the 21st century would depend significantly on the quality of education among our people, particularly in the sphere of higher education.
We have seen that economic policies are prepared for different developmental aspects, mainly for infrastructure development, but now time has come to frame new economic policy for knowledge development; and in this new policy the main role will be played by the information and technological institutions. 
President APJ Abdul Kalam keeps emphasizing that if India is to keep pace with other developed countries it has to create a knowledge society where each and everyone would be the member of such society. He is optimistic that India would be a force to reckon with in the fields of science and technology by 2020. Keeping this end in view, government support for higher education should increase to at least 1.5 per cent of GDP out of the total 6 percent of GDP allotted for education. 
It cannot be denied that our universities as a whole are new, and are facing a financial crunch. The consequent cuts imposed on the annual grants by the University Grants Commission (UGC), State government and other State funding agencies are also unsettling. To tide over this situation and mobilize sufficient resources for the universities, is a formidable task. It is revealed that India spends $307 per pupil as compared to $9340 and $7418 in case of USA and Australia respectively. Even developing countries like Pakistan, Kenya and Ghana are far ahead of us (Statistical Year Book, Paris, UNESCO, 1990). 
Many education commissions have urged the Government of India to start institute-cum-industry so that a student learns theory from the teacher in the classroom and performs practicals in the industry. This will not only enhance the economy of the country but also solve the ‘‘brain drain’’ problems.
India is a vast country and the Government of India should deal equally with all the States. But some sort of disparity has been witnessed in case of the northeastern States, especially if one compares the number of technical institutions in the region to that of other parts of the country. This is in spite of the fact that Dr Bijoy P Bhatkar, the renowned super computer scientist of India, had pointed out the ample scope for setting up new value-based technical institutions in Assam. 
In the last Assam Assembly session, the Education Minister admitted that the State was facing a ‘‘brain drain’’ problem possibly because of the lack of competent institutes of higher education. On the other hand, lack of quality higher education has led to the burgeoning of unemployment problem among the youths of the northeastern region. But the most unfortunate situation is when official red tape and haggling over site selection (as in the case of the setting up an engineering college at Dhemaji) thwarts the cause of higher education in the region time and again. There is just no reason why an engineering college should not come up at Dhemaji. I shall talk about this issue in detail next week in this column.

  (The Sentinel,10.06.2007)

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