<p>The University Grants Commission (UGC) chairman Ved Prakash on Thursday said the commission would set up a Higher Education Finance Corporation (HEFC) with the support of government and corporate companies. He said the corporation would help overcome financial problems of the universities.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Prakash was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of a principals meet on ‘Quality Enhancement in Higher Education: Issues and Concerns’, organised by the University of Mysore (UoM), UGC-Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC) and College Development Council (CDC), at Crawford Hall, here.<br /><br />“Varsities are not getting sufficient funds and are in dire crisis. The system needs financial reforms. Even though the Education department collects a cess, it spends the same on primary education so there is a need for rectification of the fee structure and also flow of funds,” Prakash said.<br /><br />“The per capita expenditure has declined in varsities and hence institutions should augment internal recoveries to mobilise more funds. Guidelines for bank loans for students to pursue higher education is also not adequate so a multi-pronged approach is needed to mobilise funds,” the UGC chairman said.<br /><br />“There is a pressing demand for higher education as it contributes not only to an individual for personal growth but to the global economy too. The country has its constraints as we are a heterogeneous society and we need to ensure homogeneity in the society which can be achieved through hard work,” he said.<br /><br />‘World-class varsities needed’<br /><br />“The country needs world-class universities second to none, and institutions should look into their profile to identify and understand their weakness. Modern society needs research universities as when research becomes the focus, teaching will not be neglected. Research faculty should be highly competitive and collaborative. There is a need for a multi-pronged approach in terms of research and recruitment of faculty. Research universities need special and multi-faculty facility to ensure universal knowledge on the campus,” he said.<br /><br />Ved Prakash said, “There is a need for change in the present system of education because the education sector has been working in isolation with a lack of proper transition between primary, secondary and higher education. Each institution is working as a separate sector. They should work with conjunction to understand and eradicate the harshness.”<br /><br />The meet aimed at understanding the role of different stakeholders in quality enhancement in higher education, in finding out ways and means to ensure quality in the ever-expanding higher education and to verify whether quality assurance is leading to enhancement.<br /><br />UoM VC K S Rangappa, CDC Director S Srikantaswamy, UGC-HRDC Director Midatala Rani and Registrar R Rajanna were also present.<br /><br />A book titled ‘Language Politics and Policies in India During 20th Century’ authored by Midatala Rani was released, and new buildings constructed for the departments of Molecular Biology, Genetics and Genomics and Srinivasa Ramanujan block of the department of Mathematics were also inaugurated on the occasion.</p>
<p>The University Grants Commission (UGC) chairman Ved Prakash on Thursday said the commission would set up a Higher Education Finance Corporation (HEFC) with the support of government and corporate companies. He said the corporation would help overcome financial problems of the universities.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Prakash was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of a principals meet on ‘Quality Enhancement in Higher Education: Issues and Concerns’, organised by the University of Mysore (UoM), UGC-Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC) and College Development Council (CDC), at Crawford Hall, here.<br /><br />“Varsities are not getting sufficient funds and are in dire crisis. The system needs financial reforms. Even though the Education department collects a cess, it spends the same on primary education so there is a need for rectification of the fee structure and also flow of funds,” Prakash said.<br /><br />“The per capita expenditure has declined in varsities and hence institutions should augment internal recoveries to mobilise more funds. Guidelines for bank loans for students to pursue higher education is also not adequate so a multi-pronged approach is needed to mobilise funds,” the UGC chairman said.<br /><br />“There is a pressing demand for higher education as it contributes not only to an individual for personal growth but to the global economy too. The country has its constraints as we are a heterogeneous society and we need to ensure homogeneity in the society which can be achieved through hard work,” he said.<br /><br />‘World-class varsities needed’<br /><br />“The country needs world-class universities second to none, and institutions should look into their profile to identify and understand their weakness. Modern society needs research universities as when research becomes the focus, teaching will not be neglected. Research faculty should be highly competitive and collaborative. There is a need for a multi-pronged approach in terms of research and recruitment of faculty. Research universities need special and multi-faculty facility to ensure universal knowledge on the campus,” he said.<br /><br />Ved Prakash said, “There is a need for change in the present system of education because the education sector has been working in isolation with a lack of proper transition between primary, secondary and higher education. Each institution is working as a separate sector. They should work with conjunction to understand and eradicate the harshness.”<br /><br />The meet aimed at understanding the role of different stakeholders in quality enhancement in higher education, in finding out ways and means to ensure quality in the ever-expanding higher education and to verify whether quality assurance is leading to enhancement.<br /><br />UoM VC K S Rangappa, CDC Director S Srikantaswamy, UGC-HRDC Director Midatala Rani and Registrar R Rajanna were also present.<br /><br />A book titled ‘Language Politics and Policies in India During 20th Century’ authored by Midatala Rani was released, and new buildings constructed for the departments of Molecular Biology, Genetics and Genomics and Srinivasa Ramanujan block of the department of Mathematics were also inaugurated on the occasion.</p>
