10/12/2025, CESS, Hyderabad
Higher Education is to impart Scientific and Quality Knowledge
The overall objective of the higher education is to impart scientific and quality knowledge, said Prof. Sukhdev Thorat while releasing the Higher Education in Telangana Report, prepared by CESS. He said inequality and access to quality of education are key factors that state must address. He pointed out there are a number of faculty vacancies in the universities in the state. Prof. JBG Tilak chair of the session, said although quantitative expansion of the higher education in the state remarkable, increasing privatisation is a concern. He raised a concern that Telangana is still one of the states with lowest literacy rates across states in India. Also, he pointed out that inequalities in higher education between the rich and the poor are widening. Prof. Shanta Sinha spoke about the explosive demand for higher education in the state. She spoke about the students studying while doing part-time job. She said privatisation of education is undemocratic, exclusionary and unequitable. Prof. Revathi, Director, CESS, explained the findings of the report. She said Telangana during the last three decades performed remarkable in school and higher education. However, she said, increasing privatisation and challenges related to delivering quality of education the concerns that state must address.
The Higher Education in Telangana – Facts and Figures Report, serves as a baseline assessment of the state’s higher education system across five key pillars: access, equity, quality, affordability, and accountability. It situates the current landscape within the broader historical context of educational development in Telangana and reviews relevant national policies. The report includes a district-wise mapping of higher education institutions, an overview of the policy framework for vocational education, and a conceptual framework for assessing educational quality. This is complemented by an in-depth analysis of NAAC accreditations and NIRF rankings of higher education institutions in the state, along with a discussion on the need for developmental teaching. In addition, the report provides a comprehensive review of public expenditure on education, with a particular focus on higher education. It examines the prospects for expanding enrolment and achieving improvements in the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER), especially in the context of the NEP 2020 target of a 50 percent GER by 2035, and identifies key challenges in implementing the policy in Telangana. Overall, the report integrates empirical data with analytical insights to present a holistic picture of the higher education sector in the state.