India should invest in higher education if it has to grow: Pai

Notwithstanding the positive changes that globalisation has brought about for the Indian economy, it is necessary for the country to invest in education, especially higher education if it has to grow, a senior Infosys board member said on Saturday.

Notwithstanding the positive changes that globalisation has brought about for the Indian economy, it is necessary for the country to invest in education, especially higher education if it has to grow, a senior Infosys board member said on Saturday.

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Lamenting the "failure" of higher education in India, T V Mohandas Pai, member of the Board and Director; Human Resources, Education and Research and Administration Infosys Technologies limited, said, "Lack of autonomy, funding and lack of a proper system have destroyed the higher education system."

Liberalisation and opening up of higher education is necessary to put the education system on track, he said during a lecture on "India at 2030", organised by Bangalore University and Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), here.

The other measures that Pai suggested for improvement of higher education included having more number of educational institutions, increase enrolment in colleges from 12.4 per cent in the age group of 18-24 years to 30 per cent and having a national scholarship to make education accessible to all.

Alleviation of poverty is the other major challenge, which has to be tackled and "benefits of globalisation reach those at the bottom of the pyramid," he said.