Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab chief ministerial candidate and Member of Parliament (MP) Bhagwant Mann on Saturday demanded regularisation of fees charged by private educational institutions in the country.
Expressing concern over the migration of young minds and money (brain and money drain) from India, including Punjab, Mann said the present poor condition of government universities should be improved and a concrete plan should be drawn up for regularisation of fees of private educational institutions.
He said more than 1.5 lakh students and Rs 30,000 Crores from Punjab are going to foreign educational institutions every year due to the high cost of private education in the country.
“Punjab is one of the states in the country where around 1.50 lakh to 2 lakh youth go abroad every year to study and earn a living. At the same time about Rs 30,000 crore goes to foreign universities, colleges, and schools in the form of fees and other expenses, which constitutes 20 percent of the Punjab government’s budget,” Mann said.
The AAP leader said talented youngsters and loads of money are also going abroad every year as since independence Punjab and Union governments have not implemented any modern and world-class plan or improved the system in the field of science including medicine, engineering, information technology.
“This exodus is very unfortunate and it should be stopped to save our youth and money,” he said. Mann alleged that the ruling Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal), and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments in Punjab have neither provided good and scientific education in the state nor created the progressive environment for living a good life.
The governments of Parkash Singh Badal, Captain Amarinder Singh, and Charanjit Singh Channi have created drug, corruption, liquor, sand, and cable mafia in the state to plunder the natural resources of the state and to fill their own coffers, he added.
Mann said that it was very unfortunate that due to the high cost of education and private education mafia, students from the state were forced to leave their homes and country to study abroad.
He said it was very important to reform the Indian education system and government colleges and universities should be set up in maximum numbers.