Suchergebnisse

The question of good governance in East and Southeast Asia, as elsewhere, is linked to the degree of autonomy of the state, and the objectives it pursues. While the economy can never be fully disembedded from society, social transformation ending private powers of non-marked coercion can promote both state autonomy and good governance. Both governance and autonomy are relational concepts and their quality and content are shaped by external influences and the ability of the ruling class to face up to the challenges. (DSE/DÜI)

West Bengal, in 1951, was ranked second in the country, with a literacy level of 24.0 per cent, though far behind Kerala with a literacy level of 47.18 per cent. From the very beginning there was an elitist bias in educational planning, so that primary education was badly neglected, and so subsequently West Bengal began to slide in relation to states like Kerala, Maharashtra, Mizoram or Goa. Unfortunately, the elitist bias also persisted during the Left Front rule. As a result, by the time of Census 2011, the literacy level of West Bengal had slid down so far that it was barely above the national average. At the same time, the small state of Tripura, also ruled by a Left Front government, coming up from far behind had caught up with and then had overtaken West Bengal, and was only a little behind Kerala, the most literate state in India. Although this article is supposed to be an account of the state of education in West Bengal since independence it concentrates essentially on the primary school sector, because that is the foundation of all further education. It refers to the Bhabatosh Datta Commission on higher education whose recommendations still remain valid and unfortunately unimplemented.