Impact of politics on higher education in India

Indian higher education is the third largest in the world. With nearly 140 million people in the college-going age group, one in every four graduates in the world will be a product of the Indian education system. Higher education in India has recorded impressive growth since independence. India has been trying to reform its higher education system for more than a half-century but the results in terms of systemic change have been minimal. The problem that we come across on a daily basis and in large scale is political corruption in the education system. For nearly two decades, left wing academicians ruled India's intelligentsia and imposed a deeply political education system on the country by capturing the entire intellectual establishment. Our present education system lacks vision and direction. Unless we set this process in motion, our educational system will remain grossly inadequate and incompetent. Our educational system should be guided by three objectives--character building, nation building and skill development. If we can accomplish these goals then India is destined to make its mark in the world. This paper analyse the impact of politics on higher education.