To promote the enrolment of girls in higher education, the Maharashtra state government has sanctioned a complete academic fee waiver for girls from families earning no more than Rs 8 lakh or less. The state will reimburse the amount. The measure is likely to promote girls’ enrollment in higher education.
Maharashtra’s higher and technical education minister Chandrakant Patil announced this on February 2 during the Joint Board of Vice-Chancellors (JBVC) meeting. Recently there has been a 50 per cent academic fee waiver in the same category which is now extended to 100 percent. Patil added that universities should strive towards ensuring that more girls are taking admission to higher education courses across various fields and urged VCs to run special campaigns in support of the same, highlighting the importance of varsities declaring results on time.
Governor of Maharashtra, Ramesh Bais, who chaired the Joint Board of Vice-Chancellors (JBVC) in his capacity of Chancellor to all state universities, also advised all VCs to declare results on time. He stated, “This is important to ensure that students do not miss out on their academic years or job opportunities, due to delay in results,” as per a report by the Indian Express.
The governor had reprimanded institutions for delayed results last year as well. He had said that VCs will be held responsible for the delay in declaration of results and dispensation of mark-sheets.
Speaking about how countries like Germany, Japan, Israel are looking to India for skilled manpower, Governor Ramesh Bais emphasised that universities should offer skill-based and job-oriented programmes. He also directed the Vice Chancellors to adopt ten villages under their respective varsity’s jurisdiction in order to work toward academic and social development in rural areas.
The governor also directed universities to increase participation in the National Institutional Ranking Framework. He requested universities to submit a thorough report on the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) and the actions taken.
Moreover, Skill Development Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha announced goals to establish skill centres in all universities, offering training to students to secure business and job opportunities.
Chief secretary Nitin Karir highlighted the importance of students learning diverse languages and skills, urging universities to provide internships for private university students in government and semi-government offices. The state government intends to speed up scholarship disbursements, with a proposal to waive GST on attached fees, which will be discussed in the upcoming GST Council meeting.
Principal Secretary of the higher and technical education department, Vikas Rastogi outlined the agenda for the meeting, which included implementing the Maha-Swayam online learning platform, addressing challenges faced by autonomous colleges, introducing new credit courses, and expanding the internship policy to various state government departments before cabinet approval.
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