As I scrolled through the front page of todays TOI with my eyes half open and myself still in half slurry sleep ,one headline was enough to get me wide awake.Our respected and most talented babus at the Ministry Of Human Resources and Development have done it yet again,the MHRD has decided to stop the funding for labs,infra setup ,sponsoring faculties to present their research at international forums and sponsoring national and international seminars.The news might just be the last nail in the coffin of public higher education system in India.
India specially successfully congress governments have prided themselves on the Nehruvian vision of setting up higher education institutions of excellence like the IIT's and IIM's.The main building of IIT Kharagpur has an old marble slab with the wordings of Pandit Nehru inscribed on it "Here in the place of that Hijli Detention Camp stands the fine monument of India, representing India's urges, India's future in the making. This picture seems to me symbolical of the changes that are coming to India."
And now 50 years hence a government run by his own party decided to end it all and the reasons.Well the MHRD argues that all the above are merely "operating expenses" and "wasteful"(you mean like providing the contingent of our babus and netas luxury tickets to see the world every year..Mr Sibal we take your point)and its necessary to remove them to improve "efficiency"(oh really wouldn't one think improving efficiency would be frst reducing your motley percentages in the contracts ministry doles out but no we are foolish morons...aam aadmi)
Stupid as the reasons are even worse would be the consequences.To understand the consequences first let us see the problems facing all IITs and IIMs today.With opening up of economy and global MNC's recognising the talent of IIT and IIM grads with ever inflating pay checks it has been so difficult for these institutions to maintain the minimum student faculty ratio.Add to it the fact that Mr Arjun Singh had a foolish idea of implemention 27% OBC quota with no decreasae in general seats and the picture becomes so grim.World over the best universities work hard to mantain a minimum level of student faculty ratio...typically abot 4:1 for research universities (which the IITs and IIMs hope to become rather than just a world class provider of quality education programs)and to mantaun these level the faculties are provided with best facilities including those which MHRD terms "inefficiencies" and "operating" expenses.
If the MHRD indeed goes on to implement these proposals we would not only have fewer than ever bright students deciding to take up a career in academics but even most faculty members at these institutes deciding to look for better prospects abroad or to private institutes across the country.As a student at IIT Kgp I know the passion that drives all faculty members at Kgp...it certainly goes beyond pay checks but then even they are humans and you cant just go on treating the people who played such an important role in building this "new India" for us as second rated citizens.
The MHRD proposes increases an increase in tuition fees to fund the expenses related to seminars,library etc.Well let me point out the ineffectivness of the above:
1)A typical MBA and engineering course in a private institute with facilities nt even comparable to IITs costs about 6 lacs/2 lacs ...hw many ppl can afford this..has the govt forgotten we are a knowledge driven economy requiring increased and better quality graduates.....unlike developed countries we can hardly afford to decrease the penetration levels of higher education
2)we got in the IT bandwagon by mistake but other countries are catching up...losing our technical edge would be the biggest folly our govt would ever make
3)India grew at an avg rate of about 7% pa ..with such increased growth shouldn't we have govt spending more on higher education ..where are all the funds going?on stupid wage increases to babus and the most inefficient govt. employees across the country
4)We are competitive today because of our low cost advantage but most countries lose this edge within about 15-20 years...only a strong technological and research capability can keep us going...its time to prepare for future rather than blindly following west.Even US despite its cost disadvantage continues to remain at forefront of world economies because its the provider of latest technology in the world.
5)In the new era we would need new technology for industry but space exploration,strategic defense...if govt. calls research and academic expenses wastage...hw will it survive..also some of the most breath taking research in world took place by accidents in universities in programs which were "deemed failures" not in specialised research institutes like CSIO or DRDO...research is an investment nt an expense
So all those bureaucrats sitting in their comfy offices in south block ..wake up..if you cant do any good for the country at least don't spoil what already is good
Happy Blogging
Friday, September 18, 2009
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Nuke troubles
A startling reveleation by a ex DRDO scientist at an international conference have had Indians doubting about what they were so proud of ...the belief that their nation was among the few that developed and tested its nuclear arsenal and assosciated delievery systems itself.When shantaram rose to the dias and said "“I stand by what I said (that the thermonuclear test at Pokhran-II was a ‘fizzle’). I won’t say anything more before the dust settles down.”:..people started doubting not only bastards called Indian politicians but the hithertho respected personalities like Abdul Kalam and scientists like R Chidambaram.
The Indian Nuclear tests have been in spate of controversy ever since they were conducted in May 1998.While the Indian scientists claimed that they exploded devices with combined yield of 60Ktonnes.Their american counterparts claim that India couldnt have got a yield more than 20KT .And the chief suspect among all the three exploded devices is a thermonuclear device which was claimed to have a yield of 45kt.
Internationally thermonuclear technology is one of the most advanced and difficult to master and most nations including China,US and Russia have had to conduct several tests before they were satisfied with the servicabilty,design and employbilty of their devices.India on the other hand claims it sucessfuly exploded the thermonuclear device in the first test itself
Looking at the above facts and the history of DRDO to land itself in failed projects we cannot but doubt the verfy claims which form the basis of our having a credible minimum nuclear deterrent and aour ability to strike back in case of a nuclear war.Thus if the claims are indeed false,it means their lies deep imolication for Indian security and we need to rethink many policies we are carrying on with.
For beginning we are surrounded by nuclear armed nations which can be expected to use the first strike approach in case of a confrontation.An inability to strike back would massively undermine indian security and its ability to protect the borders from confrontation and hold a strong hand at international bargaining tables.
Secondly we are in a time which wouyld define which counteries would rule the world for the next century.We have already lost enough ground to China and internationally are considered a distant second or third among the counteries that could end US Hegemony.A country with untested nuclear warheads and inabilty to carry forward nuke strike s internationally only weakens our case.Even if the tests were succesful we are still far behind.China developed ICBM's with capabilty to strike at any point in the world long time back,Indian ICBM project is still gathering dust in some file at South block and to it the probabilty of "fuzzed" out thermo nuclear devices lying in our arsenal ...yo ho we are out of race already and probbaly the international powers know about it already,.Thats why we dont have the kind of international clout that we deserve.
All the above reasons make a compelling ase for going on with Pokhran 3.Time has come that India ...for so long the sleeping tiger to rise and show the world its capable of but we need to do this with our deeds rather than words.Action needs to be take to improve our crippling defence services.
It is high time that we stop dancing to the tune of western nations and start doing whats right for us.A series of nuclear tests and moving our nuclear fuel from scarcely avaliable Uranium to tritium would go a long way to strengthning our nuclear detternce if not attack capabilty.heres what I propose:
1)Change the policy framework to make India an attack capable rather than a minimum detterent nation.
2)Permit the private sectoe to enter the defence sector.Some of the most advanced warheads and millitary equipment have been developed by private companies.We must accept the fact that DRDO has failed the nation.It took them more than 25 years to develop dhruv and then also we dont have our own engine or electronics in it....private sector is far more efficient than public sectors and we have numerous examples for the same
3)Set up a time bound plan to me the armed services equipped with the latest weapon system
4)Modrernise and invest heavily on setting up spy agencies.The intelligence faliure has lead tp numerous terrorist attacks and millitary operations like Kargil etc.We need to modrernise our spy services.Remember it was FBI intelligence which helped US negotiate the Cuban missile crisis and it was again superority of western intelligence that made them victors of cold war
5)Shift pur focus from a pakistan centered nation and start competing with China ,US and other western powers.We should be comparing ourselves with the most lethal armed forces of the world and not a nation which is on a brink of being declared a "failed" state
Time has come that we wake up from our slumber sleep and immediatetly over haul our millitary capabilities or we would lose the 21st century just as we lost the 20th century
Happy Blogging
The Indian Nuclear tests have been in spate of controversy ever since they were conducted in May 1998.While the Indian scientists claimed that they exploded devices with combined yield of 60Ktonnes.Their american counterparts claim that India couldnt have got a yield more than 20KT .And the chief suspect among all the three exploded devices is a thermonuclear device which was claimed to have a yield of 45kt.
Internationally thermonuclear technology is one of the most advanced and difficult to master and most nations including China,US and Russia have had to conduct several tests before they were satisfied with the servicabilty,design and employbilty of their devices.India on the other hand claims it sucessfuly exploded the thermonuclear device in the first test itself
Looking at the above facts and the history of DRDO to land itself in failed projects we cannot but doubt the verfy claims which form the basis of our having a credible minimum nuclear deterrent and aour ability to strike back in case of a nuclear war.Thus if the claims are indeed false,it means their lies deep imolication for Indian security and we need to rethink many policies we are carrying on with.
For beginning we are surrounded by nuclear armed nations which can be expected to use the first strike approach in case of a confrontation.An inability to strike back would massively undermine indian security and its ability to protect the borders from confrontation and hold a strong hand at international bargaining tables.
Secondly we are in a time which wouyld define which counteries would rule the world for the next century.We have already lost enough ground to China and internationally are considered a distant second or third among the counteries that could end US Hegemony.A country with untested nuclear warheads and inabilty to carry forward nuke strike s internationally only weakens our case.Even if the tests were succesful we are still far behind.China developed ICBM's with capabilty to strike at any point in the world long time back,Indian ICBM project is still gathering dust in some file at South block and to it the probabilty of "fuzzed" out thermo nuclear devices lying in our arsenal ...yo ho we are out of race already and probbaly the international powers know about it already,.Thats why we dont have the kind of international clout that we deserve.
All the above reasons make a compelling ase for going on with Pokhran 3.Time has come that India ...for so long the sleeping tiger to rise and show the world its capable of but we need to do this with our deeds rather than words.Action needs to be take to improve our crippling defence services.
It is high time that we stop dancing to the tune of western nations and start doing whats right for us.A series of nuclear tests and moving our nuclear fuel from scarcely avaliable Uranium to tritium would go a long way to strengthning our nuclear detternce if not attack capabilty.heres what I propose:
1)Change the policy framework to make India an attack capable rather than a minimum detterent nation.
2)Permit the private sectoe to enter the defence sector.Some of the most advanced warheads and millitary equipment have been developed by private companies.We must accept the fact that DRDO has failed the nation.It took them more than 25 years to develop dhruv and then also we dont have our own engine or electronics in it....private sector is far more efficient than public sectors and we have numerous examples for the same
3)Set up a time bound plan to me the armed services equipped with the latest weapon system
4)Modrernise and invest heavily on setting up spy agencies.The intelligence faliure has lead tp numerous terrorist attacks and millitary operations like Kargil etc.We need to modrernise our spy services.Remember it was FBI intelligence which helped US negotiate the Cuban missile crisis and it was again superority of western intelligence that made them victors of cold war
5)Shift pur focus from a pakistan centered nation and start competing with China ,US and other western powers.We should be comparing ourselves with the most lethal armed forces of the world and not a nation which is on a brink of being declared a "failed" state
Time has come that we wake up from our slumber sleep and immediatetly over haul our millitary capabilities or we would lose the 21st century just as we lost the 20th century
Happy Blogging
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