April 18, 1964
THE
ECONOMIC WEEKLY
Educational Planning and Economic Development
K K Subrahmanian
up
and
Progress of
the number
education in India continues to be
of students coming out of them
The University Grants Commission justifies the
tion on the ground that the number of students coming
respondingly.
This
developing
is, however,
country.
hardly the
E X P E N D I T U R E o n education i s
a productive investment in human resources and its consequence
is a f o r m of c a p i t a l — a produced
means of p r o d u c t i o n — w h i c h may
be c a l l e d 'human c a p i t a l ' to distinguish it f r o m physical c a p i t a l .
It
goes w i t h o u t saying that developing
countries have to invest a sizeable
p o r t i o n of their resources in educat i o n . In these countries, t h o u g h lab o u r is abundant the inadequate supp l y of s k i l l and knowledge and cap i t a l goods per capita constitutes a
m a j o r impediment to g r o w t h of prod u c t i v i t y and
economic
development. The f o r m a t i o n of these t w o
types of capital — human and physical — is the pre-requisite f o r development. Further, economic development also presupposes a f a v o u r a b l e
socio-political climate, in the creat i o n of w h i c h education of the people has a v i t a l role. F r o m a l l these
aspects, a deliberate p l a n of investment in education is a pre-condition
of g r o w t h . It is not enough that a
sizeable part of the c o m m u n i t y ' s resources s h o u l d be invested in educ a t i o n ; that investment should be
p r o p e r l y planned so as to get the
m a x i m u m social r e t u r n .
Two Aspects of Planning
P l a n n i n g of education in the underdeveloped economies has a negative as w e l l as a positive aspect. On
the negative side, it i m p l i e s a reasonable restraint on investment in
types of education the capital f o r m ed w h e r e f r o m has o n l y a l o w marg i n a l efficiency to the i n d i v i d u a l and
to the society and w h i c h p l a y o n l y
a m i n o r r o l e in increasing national o u t p u t . The existing educational
system in the underdeveloped countries, or at least in a m a j o r i t y of
t h e m , is not such as can create the
r i g h t type of s k i l l s and talents needed f o r development. Y e t , there may
exist p o w e r f u l pressure against a
change in the system,
w h i c h has
right
criterion
by
judged by the
with degrees,
increase in
passing out
which
to
number
of universities
and colleges
set
the number of institutions of higher educaof the secondary schools has increased con
regulate
evolved t h r o u g h a h i s t o r i c a l process
of inheritance. In a p l a n n e d economy we accept r e g u l a t i o n of investment in consumption g o o d s ; it is
no less r a t i o n a l to c u r t a i l investment in education w h i c h contributes
l i t t l e or n o t h i n g to the growth of
national income.
On the positive side, p l a n n i n g of
education i m p l i e s a scientific project.ion of the long-term requirements
of the q u a n t u m and q u a l i t y of s k i l l s
a n d , in that context, the d r a w i n g up
of an educational p l a n and its exec u t i o n . What should be the pattern
of investment in education ?
The
gestation between i n p u t and output
in education is necessarily l o n g and
so the investment p l a n must have a
long-term perspective. Educational
p l a n n i n g has to proceed a l o n g w i t h
manpower p l a n n i n g and both these
s h o u l d f o r m an integral part of the
overall economic p l a n .
Investment in Education
In the l i g h t of the above observations it w i l l be interesting to evaluate educational p l a n n i n g i n I n d i a .
The Five-year Plans have recognised
the importance of education as an
instrument of economic progress and
t h e , investment in education has
been progressively stepped u p . Thus
w h i l e the First P l a n p r o v i d e d for
Rs 169 crores,
the Second P l a n
a l l o t t e d Rs 204 crores, and the outlay on education in the T h i r d Plan
is estimated to be Rs 408 crores.
T a b l e 1 gives an idea of the g r o w t h
of investment in education, p a r t i c u l a r l y o f investment f r o m Government funds.
Between 1950-51 and 1960-61,
corresponding to the period of the
first two Plans, expenditure on education increased by 210 per cent
f r o m Rs 114.38 crores to Rs 355.50
crores. T h i s increase has to be considered against the g r o w t h of p o p u l a t i o n and of n a t i o n a l income. Such
investment
in
higher
education
in a
a comparative study is given in
Table 2 and the picture that emerges is far f r o m reassuring.
W h a t is even more d i s a p p o i n t i n g
is the pattern of educational investment, w h i c h continues to c o n f o r m
to the pre-independence,
pre-plann i n g pattern. Progress of education
continues to be judged in terms of
the n u m b e r of universities a n d colleges set up a n d the n u m b e r of students c o m i n g out of them w i t h degrees. There has taken place an unb r i d l e d expansion of universities
and institutions of higher l e a r n i n g
w h i l e the lower formations have remained in a neglected state.
The
April 18, 1964
a l a r m i n g g r o w t h i n the n u m b e r o f
universities and i n s t i t u t i o n s o f h i g h er education can be seen f r o m T a b l e
3.
False Criterion
T h i s e x p a n s i o n i n the n u m b e r o f
universities and institutions of higher l e a r n i n g is j u s t i f i e d by the U n i versity Grants C o m m i s s i o n on the
g r o u n d that the n u m b e r of students
passing out of the secondary schools
has increased c o r r e s p o n d i n g l y . T h e
U G C ' s A n n u a l r e p o r t f o r 1959-60
says:
" a s education at the l o w e r
level spreads and m o r e and m o r e
boys and g i r l s c o m p l e t e their school
e d u c a t i o n , the n u m b e r of t h e m w h o
seek a d m i s s i o n to the U n i v e r s i t i e s
w i l l n a t u r a l l y rise." T h i s , however,
is h a r d l y the r i g h t c r i t e r i o n by
which
t o regulate investment i n
h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n . T h e I n d i a n economy is not developed enough to absorb a l l the graduates and postgraduates in h u m a n i t i e s e m e r g i n g
f r o m the universities in the professional and p o l i t i c a l
fields;
hence
there is no j u s t i f i c a t i o n f o r the d i version of scarce resources into these
fields of e d u c a t i o n .
On the other
h a n d , these resources c o u l d be better u t i l i s e d f o r i m p r o v e m e n t i n the
q u a l i t y of education in these fields
and also f o r i n c r e a s i n g the investment in scientific a n d technical educ a t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y at the l o w e r a n d
i n t e r m e d i a r y levels.
THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY
al e q u i p m e n t of the students passi n g out of the schools is such as to
q u a l i f y a large n u m b e r of them f o r
u n i v e r s i t y education i n I n d i a ? T h e
U n i v e r s i t y G r a n t s C o m m i s s i o n admits that " t h e r e is e n o u g h evidence
to show that a great m a n y of students w h o a c t u a l l y enter on universities a n d w h o seek to enter there
do not in fact have the necessary
i n t e l l e c t u a l and e m o t i o n a l p r e p a r a tion for university education". Yet
the demand f o r h i g h e r education is
r u n n i n g far ahead o f the p r o v i s i o n
f o r it, thereby c r e a t i n g a false case
f o r f u r t h e r i n c r e a s i n g the n u m b e r of
institutions of higher education. The
real
causes
of
the never-ending
scramble for
u n i v e r s i t y education
are, first, that the e m p l o y m e n t opp o r t u n i t i e s f o r students c o m i n g out
of the secondary schools
(which
b e i n g based on the same o r t h o d o x
patterns do not create the r i g h t s k i l l
a n d talent r e q u i r e d by the econom y ) are grossly inadequate, a n d ,
second,
that f a c i l i t i e s ,
w i t h i n the
reach of the c o m m o n m a n , to get
h i m s e l f t r a i n e d i n those f i e l d s w h i c h
give a q u i c k e r a n d greater r e t u r n
are l a c k i n g . T h e r e exists a chasm
between the secondary school level
a n d h i g h e r education and the a v a i l able resources can be better u t i l i s e d
to b r i d g e this gap w i t h a r a m i f i e d
n e t w o r k o f v o c a t i o n a l , professional
a n d technical t r a i n i n g centres.
Acceptance of this p r i n c i p l e is reflected in
the
University
Grants
Commission's move to i n t r o d u c e the
three-year degree course t h r o u g h o u t
the c o u n t r y . B u t the way in w h i c h
the scheme has been i m p l e m e n t e d
has moved it away f r o m t h i s g o a l .
A n y move to restrict u n i v e r s i t y
education w i l l , f o r sure, come u p
against organised p o l i t i c a l o p p o s i t i o n ; but i t w i l l b e s u i c i d a l t o give
in to these pressures. T h e a v a i l a b l e
resources can be f a r better u t i l i s e d
f o r a reconstructed scheme of education w i t h a very b r o a d base of
u n i v e r s a l l i t e r a c y at the b o t t o m , a
r a m i f i e d n e t w o r k of t e c h n i c a l , vocat i o n a l and
professional centres at
the i n t e r m e d i a t e level a n d selective
promotion of higher education and
research.
Reconstruction Essential
M u c h o f the educated m a n p o w e r
remains u n e m p l o y e d , not s u r p r i s i n g l y . The g r a v i t y of the s i t u a t i o n can
be seen f r o m T a b l e 4.
A n d the
p o s i t i o n i s steadily w o r s e n i n g . U n e m p l o y e d graduates, other than eng i n e e r i n g a n d medical graduates, as
on the
L i v e Registers of E m p l o y ment Exchanges
n u m b e r e d 36.549
i n 1958 a n d 50.670 i n June 1 9 6 1 .
T h e waste i n v o l v e d i n such i n v o l u n tary
idleness o f h u m a n
capital,
formed
after
heavy
investment,
s h a r p l y reduces the r e t u r n to investment in education in these fields. A
p o o r c o u n t r y cannot a f f o r d t o f r i t ter a w a y its scarce resources in this
w a y as a result of u n p l a n n e d i n vestment in e d u c a t i o n ,
w h i l e there
is such u r g e n t need
for increased
investment in the scientific and technological fields of education.
T h e other consequence of unrest r i c t e d e n t r y of students i n t o c o l l e ges is that there is o v e r c r o w d i n g in
these i n s t i t u t i o n s , w h i c h i m p a i r s the
q u a l i t y of e d u c a t i o n . F u r t h e r , the
students b e i n g i l l - e q u i p p e d f o r h i g h er e d u c a t i o n , wastage is a p p a l l i n g .
An idea of the wastage can be h a d
f r o m the percentage of f a i l u r e s at
the
university examinations
and.
s t i l l m o r e , f r o m the n u m b e r o f students w h o leave t h e i r studies i n c o m p l e t e . T h u s w h i l e 86,668 students
e n r o l l e d for B A / B S c i n 1 9 5 0 - 5 1 ,
the n u m b e r of those who passed out
in 1952-53 was o n l y 4 0 , 0 1 7 ; the
e n r o l m e n t f o r M A / M S c i n 1952-53
was 19,684 and the n u m b e r of those
who passed out in 1954-55 was o n l y
11,103. T h i s is a n a t i o n a l waste,
caused by the defective pattern of
investment i n education.
A n i n t e r e s t i n g question i s : W h a t
are the forces b e h i n d the increased
demand
for
h i g h e r education I n
I n d i a ? I t i s not that the i n t e l l e c t u -
E c o n o m i c prudence as w e l l as the
need f o r i m p r o v e m e n t of the q u a l i ty of education suggest a p o l i c y of
"selective a d m i s s i o n " t o u n i v e r s i t i e s .
Source : Based on "Employment and
Unemployment Studies" No 1,
National Employment Service,
Ministry of Labour and Employment,
Government
of
India,
723