-The Hindustan Times Indira Gandhi National Open University, India’s largest distance learning varsity, allowed over a dozen private firms to offer its degrees and diplomas, violating rules and costing the public exchequer over Rs. 300 crores. The CBI is set to probe a series of MoUs signed by IGNOU under its former Vice Chancellor VN Rajasekharan Pillai with private firms that earned crores offering IGNOU degrees between 2006 and 2011, agency sources said.   Pillai,...

-The Telegraph The Supreme Court has struck down the grace marks of up to 30 per cent given to rurally posted government doctors in admissions to postgraduate medical degree courses in Odisha. Its verdict yesterday set aside an Orissa High Court order that upheld the grace marks — 10 per cent per completed year of rural service up to three years — given in the state, and therefore applies only to Odisha. But...

-The Telegraph Hazaribagh: At Sunderlal Jain Ucch Vidyalaya, a few among a group of 150 students are inevitable latecomers. Their plight has nothing to do with a dare to challenge authority, for, left without another choice, they have to get on a boat and cross a river to attend class. For the children in the villages of Larahi, Toiya, Gorkhwa and Bhattbigha, roughly 65km from the district headquarters, the Jain Ucch Vidyalaya...

-The Times of India AJMER: Information under Right To Education Act from each school will now reveal which caste and religion are deprived of qualitative education in the state. Thegovernment has asked every block to send information on 25% free admissions in private schools stating caste and religion of the child. The elementary education department is now collecting information from every private school for implementing 25% seats to students of deprived and...

Universities should not have to bow to research institutes, writes Debashis Gangopadhyay. Basic Sciences versus Applied Sciences Undermining humanities studies in schools will lead to a large number of science graduates in the market. This is a boon for multinational companies as profits will escalate — the cost of labour being lower. However, the danger to profits persist from another aspect. Students who study science out of their love for a subject are...