Whither Innovations in Higher Education in India?

Abstract

The current system of higher education in India was originally implanted by the British rulers with a set of specific colonial objectives. It was inherited by the state managers of independent India as a colonial legacy in 1947 and has been expanded phenomenally since then. Those optimistic for the future of India’s academia may argue that change in the Indian context will likely be evolutionary rather than revolutionary. It is in this context that a review of the debate on innovations in higher education assumes significance. This essay reflects on the nature and problems of innovation and reform in higher education in the country. In such reflection, it would be remiss if one does not recall the abiding interest that Philip G. Altbach has evinced in higher education in India over the last five decades. Not only has he kept track of the developments in higher education in India, but has also encouraged and stimulated me to analyze these developments and has often joined me in the process.