In May 1826, a seventeen-year-old youth, Henry Louis Vivian Derozio, joined the ten-year-old Hindu College as a teacher and revolutionised the character of the institution. He inspired a generation of students who were fearless and inquisitive. It was from then that Bengal’s higher education system began to command deep respect throughout India. Today, however, scarcely a trace of that prestige remains. In the recent past, the state has failed to produce even a single scholar or educationist whose achievements could become a source of collective Bengali pride.

Among the top hundred universities and colleges in the country, only a handful of institutions from West Bengal have found a place; among these, some are, again, centrally funded or private institutions. Can this situation now change? By a curious coincidence, the same month of May in which Derozio joined Hindu College also witnessed the formation of a new BJP government in the state under the slogan “Paltano Darkar.” The newly appointed higher education minister has also declared that his goal is to make West Bengal lead the nation in education. If this ambition is to be realised, he will have to take several difficult and unpopular decisions.

The first task must be to free educational institutions from political control. The governing bodies of all colleges in the state have already been dissolved. This is a step in the right direction. It must now be ensured that when new governing bodies are constituted, politically connected individuals close to the ruling party do not figure in these bodies. Similarly, the autonomy of universities must be guaranteed. Under the previous government, such autonomy largely existed only on paper. Higher education flourishes only when institutions are able to make academic decisions with minimal political and bureaucratic interference.

Whether in the appointment of vice-chancellors and faculty members, the design of curricula, or the formulation of research policies, merit and competence must take precedence over political loyalty. Political control is particularly undesirable in matters of curriculum development and academic research. Another difficult but necessary task must also be undertaken. During the previous government’s tenure, vacancies for elected teacher representatives in important decision-making bodies, such as, the Executive Council and the Court of universities remained unfilled for fifteen years.

The result was that teachers ~ the very backbone of education ~ had almost no role in institutional decision-making. Heads of different departments served on these bodies on a rotational basis, often for only one year at a time. Knowing that they would soon be replaced, they had little incentive or opportunity to challenge decisions imposed from above. Moreover, the earlier rules were altered to increase disproportionately the number of college principals in university Executive Councils.

Regrettably, many of them had only limited understanding of........

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