(a) whether the Government is aware that no new special protocol has been adopted in the field of technical education in the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof and reasons therefor;
(c) whether there is a grave scarcity of technical experts in the country; and
(d) if so, the corrective steps being taken by the Government to overcame this scarcity?
MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani)
(a) & (b): The Government of India has set up All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) which sets standards in technical education in the country. Based upon those standards National Board of Accreditation (NBA) does accreditation of technical institutions.
All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has been set up to ensure proper planning and co-ordinated development of the technical education system throughout the country, bringing about a qualitative improvement of education in relation to planned quantitative growth and the regulation of technical education through stipulating norms and standards of education in the system and matters connected therewith. All India Council for Technical Education(AICTE), in exercise of its powers conferred under sub-section(1) of Section 23 read with Section 10 of the All India Council for Technical Education Act, 1987 (52 of 1987), has notified the following Regulations:
“All India Council for Technical Education (Grant of Approvals for Technical Institutions) Regulations- 2012 vide notification no. 37-3/Legal/AICTE/2012 dated 27th September, 2012.” Based on these Regulations, the AICTE issued Approval Process Handbook 2012-13 and 2013-14 for approval of technical institutions. This Approval Process Handbook is operational for 2014-15 also. In the approval process handbook the norms for establishing technical institutions, including engineering and management institutions, have been provided along with the norms for closure of institutions , extension of approval, change of site/location, conversion of women’s institution into co-ed institution, increase and reduction in intake in existing institutions, adding integrated courses, adding dual degree courses, second shift programmes etc. The Approval Process Handbook 2013-14 is available on AICTE website www.aicte-india.org .
National Board of Accreditation (NBA) was established under the AICTE in September 1994 in order to assess the qualitative competence of educational Institutions from Diploma level to Post-Graduate level in Engineering and Technology, Management, Pharmacy, Architecture and related disciplines. NBA in its present form has come into existence as an autonomous body with effect from 7th January 2010, with the objective of Assurance of Quality and Relevance of Education, especially in technical disciplines, i.e., Engineering & Technology, Management, Architecture, Pharmacy, Hospitality and Mass Communication, through the mechanism of accreditation of programmes offered by technical institutions. NBA essentially undertakes programme accreditation. Details on programme accreditation are available at www.nbaind.org.
India has became permanent member of Washington Accord recently. The Washington Accord is an international agreement among bodies responsible for accrediting engineering degree programs of 17 countries namely, Australia, Canada , Chinese Taipei, HongKong, China , India , Ireland , Japan , Korea , Malaysia , New Zealand , Russia , Singapore , South Africa , Sri Lanka , Turkey , United Kingdom and United States of America.
It recognizes the substantial equivalency of programs accredited by those bodies and recommends that graduates of programs accredited by any of the signatory bodies be recognized by the other bodies as having met the academic requirements for entry to the practice of engineering. The degrees of Tier-I Institutions (autonomous institutions) will be treated as substantially equivalent with the degrees of signatory countries. The accord also recognizes maintenance of quality standards, gives the opportunity for collaborations with other accredited programs of the universities globally. Graduate attributes identified by National Board of Accreditation (NBA) which have been accepted by the Washington Accord provide an excellent reference against which the programs can be compared and a road map for every institution to improve its quality thereby benefiting Indian Engineering Graduates to acquire quality education nationally and globally.
(c) & (d): No such study has been done to establish scarcity of technical experts in the country. However, Technical Education at all levels in the country is witnessing a consistent growth pattern marked by setting up of new institutions and improvement in existing ones in tune with the quality assurance norms. Government of India has taken special steps to promote technical education in the country. Some of the steps are -
1. 8 new IITs have been established in the country during XI Five Year Plan. A need has been felt to have IITs in every state. Consequently, Government of India has decided to set-up 5 new IITs in the states of Jammu, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.
2. All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), which is the regulator of technical education in the country has taken following initiatives to encourage growth in technical manpower and technical experts –
(i) New Institutes can now start with enhanced intake capacity for more economical viability.
(ii) Part time programs for working professionals with rules for academic and administration well defined.
(iii) Promotional schemes on creation of research facilities for PG education.
(iv) Prominence to E-Subscription at library and Digital Library facilities.
(v) PG courses in 2nd shift to help take up PG education with jobs.
(vi) Approval for 2nd shift to increase utilization of infrastructure at the Institutes.
(vii) Additional division (60 seats) for lateral entry in Engineering/Technology Institutions to cater to large demand for degree education after diploma to provide more opportunities for students to meet increasing demand for technically skilled personnel.
(viii) Introduction of new QIP centres as indicated at Annexure.
(ix) Model curriculum in Engineering/ Pharmacy/Hotel Mgt. & Catering Technology/ Architecture for adoption by Universities.
(x) With the objective of Skill Development in technical education the scheme of National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) has been initiated. As on date approval has been granted to 79 Skill Knowledge providers (SKPs) and 376 Technical Institutes for implementation of the said scheme.