Making India a global education hub

Public-private partnerships can help fill the gap between the available resources in social sectors.

The Economic Survey for 2010-11 has stressed the need to develop India as a global hub for higher education and said the sector can help in the growth of the economy.

According to the Survey, India can offer foreign students, from developing countries as well as the United States, education at a price far less than what one would pay in the US. This would also require a change in visa norms for students, since multiple-year visas are required for education programmes spanning two or more years, the Survey said.

The Survey has also recommended public private partnerships in the social sector to fill the gap between the available resources in social sectors such as health and education. “Risks and returns associated with such high-cost projects need to be suitably addressed to ensure that there are enough takers for such PSPP projects in the market on a self-sustainable basis,” the Survey said.

India is still in the medium human development category, while countries like Indonesia, Sri Lanka and South Africa boast of a better ranking, the Survey added.

The Survey also brought out an inter-state comparison of socio-economic development, in which Jharkhand emerged as the best performer in terms of gross enrollment ratio for elementary education. In terms of growth during 2002-03 to 2008-09, Gujarat topped the category, while Bihar stood second.