Can private universities lift India?

By Pushkar. In a previous op-ed (India fails test of 'knowledge economy', Asia Times Online, November 30, 2012), I drew attention to what can be called a "research deficit" in India's higher education. In it, I mentioned a study by Thomson Reuters according to which India produced only 3.5% of the global research output in 2010 and its contribution in most disciplines - including mathematics and computer science - was lower than its overall average.
While these numbers are worrisome by themselves, in a China-envious country where India-China comparisons adorn the bookshelves of the growing breed of globetrotting Indians, the overall performance of India's higher education sector - including the poor world rankings of its universities - should be a cause for alarm. China has pulled ahead in higher education despite India's "English advantage".
A growing number of Chinese universities are breaking into world rankings, while the majority of Indian institutions remain trapped in mediocrity. While China's research output has grown significantly over the past decade, India's has stagnated and even declined in some disciplines. Read more...