Higher education has witnessed vigorous growth in Jammu and Kashmir in the last two decades. Many institutions of higher learning have been set up during last many years to cater to the growing needs of the state. The bifurcation of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir University led to the birth of universities of Jammu and Kashmir under the Jammu and Kashmir Universities Act 1969. Today as many as seven universities function in the state including the two newly created central universities.
Both in terms of infrastructure as well as the intake capacity and number of courses offered, the two universities of Jammu and Kashmir have developed at a healthy rate. The number of students enrolled through distance mode has also been increasing. With the setting up of many new degree colleges, the number of colleges affiliated with the two premier institutions have multiplied manifold.
The National Accreditation and Assessment council (NAAC), an autonomous body working under the aegis of University Grants Commission and entrusted with the job of monitoring the quality of education disseminated in institutions of higher learning in India, has accorded grade “A” to both the Universities. The “A” grade implies that the two institutions are best in terms of teaching, learning, infrastructure, student services, research and a number of other criteria fixed by NAAC.
So far so good, however the question remains that what these institutions are doing to create forward linkages for the whole lot of young people who leave these universities to face the challenges of real life. The problem of an ever shrinking job market is accentuated by the absence of a robust private sector is the state.
One wonders as to where these thousands of graduates and postgraduates are going to be placed. Unfortunately, there is no thought out, built-in mechanism in the educational framework of the universities for guiding this raw talent in evolving avenues for themselves as well as the society.
Essentially the problem lies with the curricula taught in those institutions. Generally the courses are designed in tune with the prevalent standards of higher education in the developed world. One hardly finds any component for the problems concerning the immediate socio-cultural context. The students of say the discipline of Botany in University of Kashmir may have all the knowledge about the medicinal plants of Kashmir, but in the absence of the vital linkage between the institution and the agencies set up by the government for the growth of such plants, the knowledge potential is never realized.
The issue of creating linkages between institutions of higher learning and industry and government agencies was taken up the NAAC Peer team that visited the University of Kashmir July last. The team recommended immediate placement of members from trade bodies, industry and financial institutions on the board of studies of various courses designed by the institution.
The huge cost incurred on higher education in the state will serve a purpose only when the fresh minds coming out of our universities are shown the way to relate themselves with the immediate society, otherwise we are augmenting the menace of unemployment in the state.
