Choosing the Best
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: March 12, 2013 -

It is good to hear that the State Government is considering giving incentive rewards of Rs 20 lakh each to three 'best' colleges selected from among the private, aided and government colleges in Manipur starting from the current academic year.

The selection is to be based on the performance and enrolment of students in these colleges in a particular academic year.

This is indeed a welcome move because such encouragement would go a long way in instilling that much needed spirit of competition among the colleges in Manipur.

What is even more appreciative in the latest move announced by Education Minister Moirangthem Okendro during the annual Guru-Pujah held under the aegis of DM College Alumni Association at the central hall of DM College of Science on March 10, is the inclusion of private and aided colleges, and not just the ailing Government colleges.

This shows that the State Government is all perked up towards its commitment for ushering in quality education in the State not just at the stage of formative schooling but also at the level of higher education.

In fact, since 1946-47, when there was just one college in the State, higher education in Manipur may have been expanded over the years, both in terms of the number of colleges and universities set up and the number of students enrolled.

At present, we may take pride in saying that higher education in Manipur is being imparted through two universities and 68 colleges including seven exclusively for women.

Of these 68 colleges affiliated under Manipur University, 28 colleges including two colleges of teacher education, one medical (RIMS) and one law college (LMS Law College) are under the management of the Government and the rest are either government funded colleges or private colleges.

Looking at this number, one may conclude that it is fair enough for a miniscule State like Manipur.

But most of these institutes of higher education are mainly concentrated in Imphal and its surrounding districts and the number of faculties present is limited in comparison to the rapid changes being witnessed in the field of education all over the globe today, thus, offering little or no scope at all for the interested students to expand their horizon of knowledge in different fields.

Development of necessary infrastructure in all the existing colleges is another area that needs urgent attention of the State Government and its Education Department for meaningful education to flourish in Manipur.

Nonetheless, we should appreciate the fact that after remaining in the backburner for a long time, the issue of education has finally caught the attention of the State Government and it has started making some serious efforts towards revamping the education system.

Of course, to expect everything at one go may not be fair, but still, there are many more to be done to make up for the deficiencies plaguing the education system from years of Government neglect and apathy.

Without taking care of these deficiencies first of all, the dream of attracting students from other parts of the country and beyond to Manipur as the final destination for education would remain just a dream and nothing more.

More that the promise of incentive awards to 'performing' colleges; it is the concern of Government towards the cause of education that matters the most. Hope this concern does not flag.

By the way, as one of the readers has suggested, why not incentive rewards for best hospitals, police stations, departments, etc, for that much needed encouragement and competitive spirit?