GER is the measure of access level in higher education, achieved by taking the ratio of people in all age groups enrolled in various programmes to total population, in the age group of 18 to 23 years.

Incidentally, state education authorities have also admitted that Gujarat is traditionally lagging behind in terms of higher education.

Hasmukh Adhia, Principal Secretary, Higher and Technical Education, Gujarat, said: “I cannot comment on this; low enrolment rate in Gujarat has always been a traditional problem. We are trying to improve on the distance education learning courses with an aim to improve GER. We are making efforts to improve the quality of education as new private universities are also coming up.”

He added: “There is a need for offering applied courses in the universities.” When asked about the low GER in Gujarat even in comparison to states such as Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand, Adhia said: “It is known that Gujarat is lagging behind, but we are taking up initiatives for improvements.”

Elsewhere, Education Minister Ramanlal Vora has expressed the need for the Private University Bill to improve the GER, in the recent Assembly Session on July 4.

But if the UGC 11th Five Year Plan is to be considered, Gujarat has a long way to go. An official from the Higher Education Department of Gujarat said the 11th Five Year Plan has recognised the dual problem of higher education in India: low enrolment rate and regional imbalance.

The 11 per cent GER in India is too low compared to 23 per cent of the world average or 36.5 per cent for countries in transitions. For developed countries, GER is around 55 per cent.

The UGC Annual Report, 2007-08, suggests achieving nearly 15 per cent GER by 2012. The prevailing average GER of India is 10.8 per cent. At present, GER in Gujarat is too marginal in comparison to other states.

On his part, S G Desai, Joint Director, Commissioner of Higher Education, said: “New pharmacy and technical colleges are coming up in Gujarat. Six colleges started last year and six are expected to begin this year.”