Mass higher education, employment opportunities and youth

The success of a Democracy like India is halved if the issue of marginalized sections of society, equity and inclusive growth is not addressed by governments with sensitivity. This is a problem that crops up whenever the State tends to relocate and redistribute equitably its resources. With the increasing population / aspirations of people and limited resources available the government has to look at the Public sector for growth. Experiences of the most populous state of India, Uttar Pradesh in Higher Education presents an interesting study. Higher Education has witnessed a strong entry of private sector. The figures tell the story better than words. As against 12 State run universities established over the last 25 years 6 private universities , against 500 state run and supported degree colleges 3000 new private colleges, against 10 State run engineering colleges 200 private engineering colleges , against 15 State run management colleges 400 management colleges have been established in just ten years . This accelerated growth has thrown up greater challenges in terms of upgraded infrastructure, quality assurance, availability of trained / qualified faculty, generation of employment, access to job market, regulation of the fee structure to enable inclusion of the marginalized etc. The government faces a monumental task of putting regulatory mechanisms in place, providing liberal grants/ subsidy, capacity building of faculty, setting up networks for e- learning and satellite based learning for the youth in the remotest and backward areas of the State .Despite this the government’s resolve for creating newer / greater job opportunities and better access to existing job markets for the youth of the State remains an unfinished task. The paper presents a case study of the mass Higher Education and employment generation efforts in the State of Uttar Pradesh. (299)