&w=3840&q=100)
Education ministry forms panel to cut coaching centre dependance
The Union Ministry of Education has set up an eleven-member panel to deliberate on concerns regarding the coaching centre ecosystem and suggest measures to reduce students' dependency on these centres for their transition to higher education.
To be chaired by Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi, the panel also includes the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) chairman, joint secretaries from the departments of school and higher education, and representatives from three IITs — Madras, Trichy and Kanpur — as well as the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).
According to the order accessed by Business Standard, the panel will examine the reasons behind the emergence of dummy schools and their role in encouraging full-time coaching at the cost of formal schooling, and will suggest ways to mitigate the issue.
This comes after the CBSE, in March 2025, barred students enrolled in dummy schools from appearing for the Class 12 examinations. Dummy schools are institutions where students are officially enrolled but are not required to attend regular classes.
These schools are often associated with students preparing for competitive entrance exams like the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) for engineering courses and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical courses.
Calling the initiative a much-needed step towards reimagining schooling in the country, Dr Ameeta Mulla Wattal, chairperson and executive director, Education, Innovations and Training at DLF Foundation Schools and Scholarship Programmes, said the move helps reclaim school systems that have been rendered irrelevant — particularly at the senior level — due to the rise of dummy schools.
The committee will also examine gaps in the current schooling system, particularly the limited focus on critical thinking and logical reasoning, and the prevalence of rote learning.
Dr Wattal added that there needs to be discussion on the misalignment between school and coaching curricula, noting that an exam-centric system of rote learning may not help students develop academic depth in their subjects.
It has also been tasked with evaluating awareness levels among students and parents regarding multiple career pathways and career counselling.
The panel will additionally review advertising practices, including the use of misleading claims and promotion of selective success stories, and suggest measures to address the issue.
This comes after the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) issued guidelines last year for the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements in the Coaching Sector, in response to growing concerns about exaggerated success rates, misleading claims and unfair contracts often imposed by coaching institutes.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
Omar Abdullah accuses Mehbooba, Lone of 'political hypocrisy' over reservation issue
Facing outcry for dragging his feet on rationalising reservation quota in government jobs, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday (June 20, 2025) accused the Opposition parties, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and J&K People's Conference (JKPC) chairman Sajjad Lone of 'political hypocrisy'. Referring to Ms. Mufti and Mr. Lone, Mr. Abdullah said these leaders had the opportunity to raise the matter earlier but 'chose to remain silent for political convenience'. 'Why didn't Ms. Mufti speak about it when she was contesting elections from Anantnag and seeking support in Rajouri and Poonch? She needed votes and did not allow even her party members to speak about reservation. Mr. Lone was closely aligned with the government for five years. While we were being thrown out of government accommodations and our security was being downgraded, he comfortably stayed in a government house. Why didn't he speak about reservations then?' Mr. Abdullah asked. Mr. Abdullah's party had promised to rationalise the quota during the Assembly elections last year. This week, a Cabinet Sub Committee (CSC) mandated to suggest recommendations filed its report. However, the government move to send the report to the Law Department for legal vetting is being perceived by the Opposition as 'dilly dallying tactics'. Also Read | Growing voices against proposed 70% quota in Jammu and Kashmir 'If I had wanted a delay, I could have extended the deadline by another six months. No one could have forced me to act. Yet, we chose to move quickly. The Cabinet accepted the Sub-Committee's report and sent it to the Law Department for legal vetting,' Mr. Abdullah said. Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) MLA Waheed Ur Rehman Parra termed the 'withholding of the subcommittee report a violation of democratic principles'. 'There is no room for secrecy in a democracy. Institutions must draw legitimacy from transparency, not concealment. The report directly impacts the future of the region's youth and should be made public without delay,' he said. Reacting to Mr. Abdullah's remarks, Ms. Mufti said, 'As Chief Minister, I ensured that 75% is reserved for open merit when some issue of NEET and other PG exams came up. I never sent the reservation to the Law Department. Now Omar sahib is pinning blame on others. Didn't he promise to resolve this issue?' Jammu and Kashmir's reservation quota was revised under the Central rule after new categories like Paharis, Paddari Tribe, Koli and Gadda Brahmin etc. were included in 2024. The open merit category was reduced significantly less than 40%. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister opposed any proposal to divert waters from Jammu and Kashmir to any other nearby State. 'I will never permit this. Our people in Jammu are already facing drought-like conditions. Why should we divert our water to Punjab? They already get water under the Indus Water Treaty. Did they ever share water with us when we needed it?' he said. On the restoration of Statehood, Mr. Abdullah said he pins hopes on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment. 'The promise hasn't been fulfilled yet,' he added.
Business Standard
3 hours ago
- Business Standard
Education ministry forms panel to cut coaching centre dependance
The Union Ministry of Education has set up an eleven-member panel to deliberate on concerns regarding the coaching centre ecosystem and suggest measures to reduce students' dependency on these centres for their transition to higher education. To be chaired by Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi, the panel also includes the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) chairman, joint secretaries from the departments of school and higher education, and representatives from three IITs — Madras, Trichy and Kanpur — as well as the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). According to the order accessed by Business Standard, the panel will examine the reasons behind the emergence of dummy schools and their role in encouraging full-time coaching at the cost of formal schooling, and will suggest ways to mitigate the issue. This comes after the CBSE, in March 2025, barred students enrolled in dummy schools from appearing for the Class 12 examinations. Dummy schools are institutions where students are officially enrolled but are not required to attend regular classes. These schools are often associated with students preparing for competitive entrance exams like the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) for engineering courses and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical courses. Calling the initiative a much-needed step towards reimagining schooling in the country, Dr Ameeta Mulla Wattal, chairperson and executive director, Education, Innovations and Training at DLF Foundation Schools and Scholarship Programmes, said the move helps reclaim school systems that have been rendered irrelevant — particularly at the senior level — due to the rise of dummy schools. The committee will also examine gaps in the current schooling system, particularly the limited focus on critical thinking and logical reasoning, and the prevalence of rote learning. Dr Wattal added that there needs to be discussion on the misalignment between school and coaching curricula, noting that an exam-centric system of rote learning may not help students develop academic depth in their subjects. It has also been tasked with evaluating awareness levels among students and parents regarding multiple career pathways and career counselling. The panel will additionally review advertising practices, including the use of misleading claims and promotion of selective success stories, and suggest measures to address the issue. This comes after the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) issued guidelines last year for the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements in the Coaching Sector, in response to growing concerns about exaggerated success rates, misleading claims and unfair contracts often imposed by coaching institutes.
Mint
3 hours ago
- Mint
Banks Face €5 Billion French Dividend Tax Bill, Senator Says
(Bloomberg) -- Banks in France are facing a combined tax bill of as much as €5 billion ($5.8 billion) over contentious trades allegedly designed to escape levies on dividend payments, according to a lawmaker who dubbed the process a 'fraud.' Senator Jean-François Husson made the announcement on Thursday after a review of confidential documents from French tax officials — suggesting that the liability for banks has doubled since authorities released estimates in 2023. Husson told reporters that the papers provided certain indications that 'the tax fraud is still ongoing.' France's finance ministry declined to comment on the amount. Over the past few years, the banking industry in France has clashed with lawmakers, tax officials and prosecutors over a dividend arbitrage strategy known as Cum-Cum, which authorities have said is responsible for billions of euros in lost revenue to the exchequer. Cum-Cum trades typically entail shifting French stock during dividend season to an entity exempt from withholding tax, such as a local bank, and then splitting the saved money between the involved parties. Earlier on Thursday, Husson accused the government of creating a 'loophole' that waters down new dividend tax rules enacted earlier this year and ratcheted up pressure to close the revenue gap. The new legislation had widened the existing tax code to include more equity trades and to prevent foreign owners of French stock and local banks from carrying out transactions aimed at avoiding withholding taxes on dividend payments. But Husson — the lawmaker who spearheaded the changes — said the government's approach is creating exceptions where the rules aren't applicable. In a statement sent earlier in the day by the Senate, Husson said he was seeking to understand why the government published in April an interpretation of the law 'that substantially strips the effectiveness of anti-fraud measures voted by parliament.' After a visit to the finance ministry, Husson blamed France's banking lobby. The French Banking Federation said in a statement that it isn't aware of the tax bill estimates discussed by the senator, adding such assessments are being contested and no court has ruled on it to date. The French finance ministry said it makes its determinations 'in complete independence,' and denied introducing any loophole in the latest law. It said it had reiterated to Husson 'the government's uncompromising fight against tax fraud.' In 2023, financial prosecutors carried out coordinated evidence-gathering raids at the premises of BNP Paribas SA and its Exane SA unit, Societe Generale SA, HSBC Holdings Plc and Natixis SA as part of their Cum-Cum investigation. None of them has been accused of wrongdoing. Later, the industry lobby challenged existing tax rules in court, with lawmakers eventually voting for changes. Amid uncertainty over the application of new laws, several big banks in Paris, from Bank of America Corp. to Goldman Sachs Group Inc., have curbed some related trading activities that involved French equity derivatives. (Updates with comment from French finance ministry in 10th paragraph) More stories like this are available on
