Government has stood up to help the students of the poorer sections to take loans for higher education. The government is planning to act as a counter-guarantor so that the financial burden does not fall entirely on the family.
During the international education fair organized by Assocham Union HRD Minister Arjun Singh announced, "We are actively considering the proposal."
He said if the proposal is approved, the government will stand in as a guarantor for students who take educational loans, so that the loan-obtaining process becomes easier and the family does not bear the brunt alone.
Giving clarification on the need for the government to provide counter-guarantee, HRD ministry sources said as per prevailing norms, an individual has to produce collateral for any loan above Rs 4 lakh.
"Indian Bank Association has not changed this norm for students seeking loans. As a result, the benefit of loan scheme would have reached only few. Therefore, government will have to intervene," officials said.
However it remains to be seen what action the finance ministry takes on the initiative taken by the HRD, though it is being considered in view of polls drawing close there are chances of the proposal of getting through.
The HRD minister has already put on all the efforts for this proposal, saying higher education could not be left to market forces, and that the government needed to be proactive.
Although Assocham had included the proposal among its recommendations on higher education, the HRD ministry has been working on this for some time.
Singh’s support comes barely a week after Congress chief Sonia Gandhi snubbed him at a public function, by praising PM Manmohan Singh for leaving his personal imprint on education reforms.
The HRD minister also stated that the state should play a key role in education. He added reforms in higher education should take in real sense and not to be undertaken just because the word "reform" has become fashionable.
Singh repeated that he is not "foreclosing opportunities" for cooperation with the outside world or the private sector, he said, "we should not be dependent on borrowed ideas".
He added, "It’s not that nothing good has come out of our education system. Look at the recent achievement by our space scientists".
The recommendations of Assocham’s were turned down by the minister — that higher educational institutes should be free to fix fees after keeping 25% seats reserved for the poor.
"Education cannot be bought and sold over the counter. Higher education will be meaningless if it is not accessible to all," Singh said.
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