Digvijay Singh tells Sibal to focus more on schools education

Evidently, not in tandem with the working methodology of the minister of human resource development, dissatisfied Congress party general secretary Digvijay Singh has asked Kapil Sibal to shift lay more focus on school education instead of higher education.

Singh reacted when Sibal proposed a reform for premier technology institutes; including courses in medicine, enrolment of foreign students and recruitment of overseas faculty at the post-graduate level.

Singh said:

“The need at the moment is that the Human Resource Development Ministry should pay more attention to the school education and skill development centres rather than higher education. I have full faith that they will look into the matter.”

He was all praises for the landmark Forest Rights Act, which is aimed at empowering the tribals. Speaking on the Act Singh said:

“In order to improve the financial condition of the tribal and non-tribal population living in the forests, they should be made the owners of the forest property. The government should continue the scientific forest management, but they should try that the profits reach them.”

The Forest Rights Act was recognised by the government in 2006 and it was notified in 2008. The main aim of the Act is to secure the land rights of tribals and forest area inhabitants. The Act also grants them access to minor forest produce such as fish, bamboo, wax, honey and medicinal plants.

However, this act has not actually turned out to be as fruitful as it was expected to have been. According to the annual reports by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs 2009/10; out of the total 2.6 million claims for land rights that have been made so far, only 25 percent have been awarded title deeds.