Why in news?

The NEET-UG exam faced controversies with issues like grace marks, allegations of paper leaks, and other irregularities. The UGC-NET exam was cancelled after being conducted, and the CSIR-NET and NEET-PG exams have been postponed.

Against this backdrop, there has been ongoing debate about transferring education back to the state list.

What’s in today’s article?

• Status of Education– Historical Background
• International practices
• Way forward

Status of Education– Historical Background

• Early phase - Education in Provincial list
  • The Government of India Act, 1935 during the British rule created a federal structure for the first time in our polity.
  • The legislative subjects were distributed between the federal legislature (present day Union) and provinces (present day States).
  • Education, as an important public good, was kept under the provincial list.
• After Independence
  • After independence, the trend set by the GoI Act 1935 was continued and education was part of the ‘State list’ under the distribution of powers.
• Recommendation of Swaran Singh Committee
  • During the Emergency, the Congress party constituted the Swaran Singh Committee to provide recommendations for amendments to the Constitution.
  • One of the recommendations of this committee was to place ‘education’ in the concurrent list in order to evolve all-India policies on the subject.
• 42nd constitutional amendment and status of education
  • The 42nd constitutional amendment (1976) by shifting ‘education’ from the State list to the concurrent list.
  • No detailed rationale was provided for this change.
• Attempt to bring back education in State list
  • The Janata Party government led by Morarji Desai passed the 44th constitutional amendment (1978) to reverse many of the controversial changes made through the 42nd amendment.
  • One of these amendments that was passed in the Lok Sabha but not in the Rajya Sabha was to bring back ‘education’ to the State list.
  • Since then, education remains in concurrent list of the Constitution.

Prevailing international practices

• In the United States, educational standards and standardized tests are set by state and local governments, while federal oversight focuses on financial aid and key educational policies.
• Canada delegates education entirely to its provinces.
• In Germany, educational legislative authority resides with its states (Länder).
• South Africa has national departments for school and higher education, with provinces implementing national policies and addressing local educational needs.

Way forward

• Arguments for 'Education' in Concurrent List
  • Uniform Education Policy - Advocates argue for a unified approach to education across the country to improve standards and ensure consistency.
  • Synergy Between Centre and States - Central coordination is seen as beneficial for aligning national goals with state-level implementation.
  • Corruption and Lack of Professionalism - Critics cite concerns about inefficiencies and ethical issues within state-level management of education.
• Arguments for Restoring 'Education' to State List
  • Recent Issues with Centralisation - Events like NEET controversies highlight that centralized control does not eliminate problems, challenging assumptions about governance efficacy.
  • Autonomy and Tailored Policies - States argue for autonomy to tailor educational policies to local needs, especially concerning syllabus, testing, and admissions for professional courses.
  • One size fits all approach can not work - Considering the vast diversity of the country, a ‘one size fits all’ approach is neither feasible nor desirable.
  • Financial Distribution–A significant amount of education expenditure is borne by the states, suggesting a need for productive discussion towards moving ‘education’ back to the State list.
    • According to the Ministry of Education's 2022 report on education spending, out of the total ₹6.25 lakh crore spent by education departments in 2020-21, the Centre contributed 15%, and the States contributed 85%.
    • When including all other departments' spending on education and training, the breakdown shifts to 24% by the Centre and 76% by the States.
• Way forward
  • Hybrid Model - Experts suggest maintaining central oversight for regulatory frameworks like medical and technical education while devolving policymaking autonomy to states.
  • Collaborative Governance - Emphasis must be given on productive dialogue between central and state authorities to achieve balanced educational reforms and efficient resource allocation.