The government’s initiative will help motivate students to go for competitive exams
Expressing concern over the low number of Goan students applying for professional courses, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has announced that, from the next academic year, a special cell will be set up under the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) to guide students on NEET and JEE. This is a positive development in the education sector. Sawant said he has learnt that many aspiring students lack information about competitive exams for admission to professional colleges and, hence, the plan to start a dedicated JEE-NEET cell.
On a related issue, he also expressed concern that nearly 30 per cent of engineering seats in Goa colleges remain vacant and that despite having 50 per cent reservations for IIT and NIT, there are very few or no takers in the state. For this, he said teachers have failed to provide students with adequate guidance on JEE/NEET examinations and the related admission process. Whose mistake is it if the students are not aware of admissions to professional colleges and career aspects? He said it’s the teachers who have to play a bigger role in making students aware of such exams.
In states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, it’s the school teachers who prod students to take up professional courses besides guiding them to prepare for UPSC exams. That answers the question as to why Bihar and Uttar Pradesh produce so many IAS and IPS officers. People in the know say that it’s the teachers there who inculcate in students the drive to aim higher and not be complacent with what they are taught. They mentally push and prepare them to answer these exams. The Chief Minister is absolutely right in saying that more students should answer the entrance exams for professional courses. Even if there are potential aspirants, there’s no one to guide them. It’s only a few schools whose management and knowledgeable teachers play a big role in the life of their students. They mould them as per their aptitude and tap their intellectual prowess to take up professional degrees.
As for UPSC exams for IAS, Goan students who have studied in Goa have rarely cracked them. It’s Ashutosh Teli Pednekar who perhaps is the first Goan—born and bred in the state—to have successfully cleared the exams. The country has seen several IAS officers of Goan origin, but they were bred in other states and had wider exposure to UPSC. They have also held high positions in several state governments. Anthony ‘Tony’ D’Sa was Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh until he retired a few years ago.
On the science side, we have Anil Kakodkar, a renowned nuclear scientist who served as chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission of India and also secretary to the government of India in atomic energy. Similarly, Raghunath Mashelkar, a renowned chemical engineer who was Director General of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), India’s largest research and development organisation. The state has also produced medical doctors who have earned name and fame at the international level. Goan students have many inspirational figures, and it doesn’t matter if they didn’t pursue their higher education here. Goan students have the talent, but they need the right environment to shine.
Goa has some highly professional institutes imparting education for JEE/NEET. However, the government’s initiative will go a long way in motivating more students to go for competitive exams. Hopefully, when the government starts the cell next year it will prove to be a professional unit, one that has been put in place with due preparation.
