KOCHI: A silver linings in the recent Kerala Budget, which overall seemed insipid, was the thrust on the education sector. The government has earmarked Rs 1,032 crore for public education, Rs 456.71 crore for higher education, and Rs 247.4 crore for technical education.
A major announcement that has garnered attention from supporters, as well as critics, is the government’s plan to explore opportunities to establish foreign university campuses in line with new UGC guidelines.
Kerala, for long, has made claims on the intent to develop the state as an educational hub. Finance Minister K N Balagopal, in his Budget speech, highlighted plans to attract expatriate academic experts and utilise their expertise to bolster higher education.
Moreover, the government has mooted a “task force” conducting regional conclaves during May-June in Europe, the US, Gulf countries, and Singapore.
The sector, notably, has been under the spotlight as a growing number of students from Kerala have been seeking higher education in other states and abroad. It is, indeed, high time the government took sincere measures to arrest this worrying trend.
The renowned Kerala education system, celebrated for its quality primary and secondary education, has been panned for lacking vision and development when it comes to higher education. Will — or can — things change?