Maharashtra government

The remark from Bombay High Court  regarding teachers spending more time in taking private tuitions, instead in colleges, has sparked an initiative from the Maharashtra government demanding asset declaration by teachers of various educational institutes in the state.

The department for higher and technical education of Maharashtra issued a government notice making it mandatory for unaided vocational institutes to get their teaching appointments approved by the government. From now onwards, the concerned regional joint director for vocational education and training will approve the teaching and non-teaching appointments for private unaided institutions.

With an intention of awarding the universities a breather, the Maharashtra state government is thinking on the lines of forming separate examination boards for courses like management studies and engineering. While the proposal is still in the brainstorming phase, it is already being applauded by educationists, varsities and teachers as well.

No longer will the choice rest between learning either Marathi and computer science or French and video technology. From the next academic year, it will be compulsory for junior college students of science faculty to opt for a second language. At present, students can opt for a vocational subject instead of a science subject and completely omit the second language. In the system as it exists in Maharashtra, the vocational subject, which carries 200 marks (100 marks each for practical and theory), will carry only 100 marks, while the second language will bear the remaining 100 marks.

If plans work out accordingly, then Maharashtra will have the alliance of Japanese universities in days to come. Japan is planning to strengthen co-operation between its universities and those in Maharashtra. The latest move is the result of the visit of Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. 

Despite the repetitive endorsement of fee free education and examinations for Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Other Backward Community (OBC) students in all Maharashtra government colleges, there are many institutions still charging huge sums from these students. Quietly turning a deaf ear to the government policies, these colleges might have expected the government agencies also to turn a blind eye to what is going on.

Coming as it does against the backdrop of spate of violent and at times marauding assaults on Indian students on its soil; Australia’s desire to have a tie-up with one of the states of the aggrieved country is bound to take many by surprise.