Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 25 Keralam Minister Roji M John on Sunday said the government planned major reforms, including efforts to attract foreign and private universities, to stem the outflow of students seeking advanced studies outside the state.
Speaking to a TV channel, John acknowledged that many students from Keralam pursued higher education outside the state. He said the government was planning major changes in the sector to address the trend.
As part of these efforts, the government is seeking to bring foreign and private universities to the state. It plans to introduce new courses and programmes in state universities in line with the latest trends.
“The government is trying to bring about the changes in the education sector that students want,” the state Higher Education minister said.
On the four-year undergraduate programme, John said Keralam had to adopt it as other states were moving towards the system in accordance with the national framework.
“So, we could not stick with three-year courses as that would affect students of our state,” he said.
He claimed that the previous administration had introduced the four-year programme without adequate groundwork or preparation, resulting in problems for students, colleges and management.
“Therefore, we constituted a committee to study the issue and submit a report. Based on the report, we will make the necessary changes in the four-year programme,” the minister said.
On the absence of permanent vice-chancellors in several state universities, John said the government wanted to appoint permanent VCs but would not accept any agenda aimed at communalising educational institutions.
“We are trying to appoint permanent VCs whilst ensuring that places of education are not communalised,” he said.
(PTI News)
