6 November 2024 : The Hindu Editorial Analysis
1. Rising STEM research demands revitalised education
(Source – The Hindu, International Edition – Page No. – 8)
| Topic: GS2 – Social Justice – Education, GS3 – Science and Technology |
| Context |
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Challenges in India’s Higher Education System
- Access and Skill Gaps: While private colleges, new IITs, and universities have increased access to education, a majority of graduates lack essential skills demanded by industry.
- Quality Concerns for Higher Studies: Research institutes report declining quality in students wishing to pursue advanced studies, with industries struggling to find skilled candidates.
- Decreasing Student Enrollment: The dwindling number of students in higher education and faculty shortages threaten the future utilization of funding in critical sectors like quantum computing and AI.
Root Cause: Quality of Training
- Focus on Rankings Over Pedagogy: Many faculty members focus on publishing papers and patents to boost institutional rankings, often compromising teaching quality.
- Limitations of Upskilling Programs: Initiatives like upskilling programs and online courses exist but lack scalability to address the large demand for skilled professionals.
Proposal for Improved Teaching and Research
- Separate Rankings for Teaching Institutions: Teaching institutions should be ranked on teaching quality rather than research output. This would reduce low-quality publications and focus more on improving student learning outcomes.
- Emphasis on Pedagogy in Teaching Institutions: Faculty should prioritise pedagogy over research, enhancing education quality in the short term to benefit research in the long term.
Suggested Reforms in Faculty Roles
- Teaching-Focused Academic Tracks: Establish a dedicated academic hierarchy (e.g., teaching assistant, associate, full professor) within teaching institutions, focusing on faculty development, teacher evaluation, and mentorship.
- Collaboration with Research Institutions: Encourage faculty interested in research to collaborate with counterparts in research institutions through government-funded initiatives like the ANRF’s PAIR program.
- Pedagogical Excellence Centers: Create government-funded centres of excellence in pedagogy, promoting teaching skills as a key criterion for faculty promotion.
Joint Degree Agreements for Enhanced Student Quality
- Partnerships Between Research and Teaching Institutions: Research institutions should create joint degree programs with teaching institutions, allowing top students to complete their final years in research institutions and earn joint degrees.
- Alignment of Curricula: For these partnerships to succeed, teaching institutions’ curricula need to align with those of research institutions, supported by workshops, on-site visits, and faculty training in pedagogical best practices.
- Pilot Programs for Expansion: Begin with partnerships between one teaching and one research institution, expanding gradually to improve curriculum quality, student outcomes, and teaching standards across India.
Benefits of the Proposed Ideas
- Improved Quality in Teaching and Research: This model would elevate undergraduate education quality, fostering better research and reducing faculty pressure.
- Enhanced Student and Faculty Exchange: Student and faculty mobility between institutions would promote higher standards and quality across teaching and research institutions.
- Applicable Across Disciplines: While the focus is on science and engineering, these reforms are applicable to the arts, humanities, and social sciences.
Conclusion
- Revitalizing India’s teaching institutions is crucial to building a stronger talent pipeline, enabling innovative research, and supporting the country’s socio-economic growth.
- These proposals align with the National Education Policy and ANRF’s objectives, offering practical steps to elevate education quality without significant additional resources.
| PYQ: Scientific research in Indian universities is declining, because a career in science is not as attractive as our business operations, engineering or administration, and the universities are becoming consumer oriented. Critically comment. (200 words/12.5m) (UPSC CSE (M) GS-3 2014) |
| Practice Question: Discuss the challenges faced by India’s higher education system in aligning graduate skills with industry needs. Analyse how separating teaching and research functions in institutions could enhance educational quality. (250 Words /15 marks) |
2. Aadhaar biometric data access will aid forensics
(Source – The Hindu, International Edition – Page No. – 8)
| Topic: GS2 – Governance |
| Context |
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UIDAI Regulations and Data Privacy
- The UIDAI enforces stringent data privacy regulations to protect individual privacy and prevent misuse of Aadhaar data.
- The Aadhaar Act, particularly Section 33(1), allows limited information disclosure by court order, but core biometric data (fingerprints, iris scans) remains strictly confidential under Sections 29(1) and 33.
- This strict confidentiality limits police access to Aadhaar’s biometric data, even for investigative purposes.
Privacy vs. Right to Dignity in Identifying Bodies
- In cases involving unidentified bodies, access to fingerprint data could assist investigations and support the right to a dignified life.
- High Court and Supreme Court rulings emphasise humane treatment of bodies, like timely execution procedures and respectful handling of migrant workers’ remains.
- Unidentified bodies often belong to economically disadvantaged individuals with strained family ties, preventing missing person reports, making it difficult for police to identify them.
Challenges in Identification Procedures
- For unidentified bodies, police follow established procedures: examine bodies, record identifying features, analyse CCTV footage, and check against missing person reports.
- Fingerprints are collected but matched only against criminal records, which are often non-digitized and limited in scope.
- While fingerprinting offers a crucial identification tool, the limited criminal records database restricts identification possibilities, making Aadhaar data access beneficial for identifying the deceased.
Limitations in Current Law and Need for Re-evaluation
- The Aadhaar Act’s restriction on sharing core biometric data poses challenges in these situations.
- Comparatively, in the U.S., law enforcement can access biometric databases to identify deceased individuals through advanced fingerprint-matching technologies.
- Reevaluating the Aadhaar Act to permit access to deceased persons’ biometric data (through verified FIRs) could enhance identification processes, ensuring it doesn’t breach constitutional norms.
Proposal for Streamlined Access
- Authorising local judicial magistrates, rather than High Courts, to permit access to Aadhaar biometric data for deceased identification can reduce higher judiciary burden.
- This regulated access prioritises privacy while respecting the deceased’s dignity, benefiting law enforcement and affected families.
Constitutional and Societal Implications
- Identifying deceased individuals is not only a practical necessity but a constitutional responsibility, ensuring dignity, closure for families, and justice.
- The law must protect this right, especially for marginalised and disadvantaged individuals who lack equal access to justice, ensuring the dignity of all individuals, living or deceased.
| Practice Question: Discuss the ethical and constitutional challenges associated with limiting access to Aadhaar biometric data for the identification of deceased individuals. (150 Words /10 marks) |
