Qualitative improvement in education our priority: Modi

Bringing qualitative improvement in the learning process was a priority for the government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday.

"We announced path-breaking reforms in the education sector. Improving the quality of learning will be my government's primary objective," Modi said while addressing the 'Bloomberg India Economic Forum' here.

Modi said the government's aim was to empower higher educational institutions to help them attain the highest standards possible.

Stating that the government will provide an enabling regulatory architecture to 10 public and private institutions each, so that they emerge as world-class teaching and research institutions, Modi said their regulatory framework will be separate from existing structures like the University Grants Commission and All India Council for Technical Education.

"They will have complete autonomy in academic, administrative and financial matters. We will provide additional resources for the next five years for the 10 public universities. This will eventually allow ordinary Indians access to affordable world-class degree courses," said Modi who spoke on several other issues, including business, during his address.

Among other educational achievements, Modi said, India had registered quantitative progress in access and pupil-teacher ratios.

"The foundation of today's knowledge economy is the quality of its school-leavers. We will allocate an increasing share of resources under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan to quality. These funds will be used to promote local initiatives and innovations to improve learning outcomes," said Modi.