India has seen a 0.6 per cent improvement in the gross enrolment ratio (GER) in higher education from 23 per cent in 2013-14 to 23.6 per cent in 2014-15, data from All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) showed.
The Ministry of Human Resource Development on Monday released the AISHE for 2013-14 and 2014-15 (Provisional).
GER in higher education in India is calculated for the 18-23 age group. It is the total enrolment in a specific level of education expressed as a percentage of the eligible official school-age population corresponding to the same level of education in a given academic year.
For 2014-15, the total enrolment in higher education has been estimated at 33.3 million with 17.9 million boys and 15.4 million girls. In 2013-14, the enrolment was 32.3 million with boys accounting for 17.5 million and girls 14.8 million.
However, gender parity has seen a decline. While in 2013-14, there were 65 female teachers per 100 male teachers at an all-India level, this declined to 64 female teachers per 100 male teachers in 2014-15.
Union Minister for Human Resource Development Smriti Z Irani said, “While the number of women opting for higher education is rising, the growth in female teachers has seen a decline. We need to look into this and think how we can incentivise women into teaching.”
For 2015-16, the Ministry has started a 60-day drive to expedite the generation of data. “We aim to disseminate data for 2015-16 before the start of the new academic year 2016-17,” she said.
Teachers’ profile
From 2016-17 onwards, post feedback from states, the Ministry will also include the profile of teachers, distance education students and ensure that data pertains to block level and not just district level, Irani added.
The 12th Plan had targeted that GER should reach 30 per cent by 2020. “We can reach that target by leveraging technology, using infrastructure efficiently,” Irani said.
AISHE was conducted online though a dedicated portal.