Need for improving education

The apex court order in regard to minimum eligibility percentage for admission in central universities for OBC category should be at most 10 per cent less than that the general category students is good, but at the same time the standard of education at primary and secondary levels in our country, especially in the rural areas, is worse. School teachers willfully keep themselves absent from duty by greasing the palms of education deparment officers of the areas and victims of their negligence in duty are none other than the students. The building built on weak plinth is bound to fall under pressure. And that happens in the case of weak students at college and university levels. Therefore, the prime necessity is to improve the primary and secondary education in right earnest.

The Supreme Court has held that the minimum eligibility percentage for admission in central universities for OBC category should be at most 10 percent less than that of general category students.

A bench headed by Justice R V Raveendran said that the eligibility criteria for OBC category students should not be decided on the basis of admission given to the last candidate in general category.

The bench, however, clarified that there would be no disturbances in the admissions which have already been done by the universities for this academic session.

The court’s clarification has come a petition filed by a former professor of IIT Madras, seeking its direction in the light of discrepancies in implementation of OBC quota in different educational institutions.

Majority of students irrespective of OBC and general categories do not have access to good education either because of the shortage of good teacher or of lax administration, resulting in absenteeism among them. The administration of education department at lower level needs to be overhauled. Otherwise no reservation would help students any more.

Even if the students get admission in colleges under central universities on the basis of reservation, would they be able to withstand the pressure of standard education if their school education has not been upto mark? So, the prime necessity is to improve the level of primary and secondary education all over the country.

Socially and economically backward students must be given adequate privilege to bring them on equal footing with the rest of the society, but it does not have any meaning if they are not taught well at school level. The root must be strong.

Without improving the standard of education, no reservation for any category of student would be of any help.