Rajasthan a “deserted” state is no more lagging behind the other states in terms of education. The state government has been taking steps to develop the level of educational standard of the state to an appreciable level. Setting up of primary schools and colleges, along with vocational training institute, Rajasthan is doing a great job.
The change in the demand of the industry has shifted the focus of the education system from theoretical to practical, hands- on learning and application. The steep competition and requirement of both the private and public sector in the state has prompted the development of the educational infrastructure.
The success of such a paradigm shift in the education system, thanks to the state government, the professionals are being hired by MNCs also from the state.
With industrialization the demand for such professionals will increase in the days to come. There is special emphasis on primary and school education as it build the personality of a student. In rural areas also the government is trying to decrease the drop- out rates and the state has been successful in doing so.
The education system and infrastructure of the state is able to compete with the infrastructure that any metro city school has. After school it comes to colleges. There are lots of institutions for studying engineering, management, law, medical science, etc. to follow higher studies in Rajasthan. Jodhpur, Jaipur, Udaipur, Ajmer, Kota, and rest cities of Rajasthan take part in a crucial role in providing brawny infrastructure of education.
Mainly there are around 22 universities in Rajasthan at present, offering varied types of Graduate, Post-Graduate degrees, professional and vocational courses.
The majority of the universities are members of the Association of Indian Universities. Some of them are the state universities, while rest are the deemed universities.
The result is that according to a 2001 report effective literacy rate in Rajasthan is 61% where Ajmer enjoys highest literacy rate of 84%. Students of Rajasthan are appearing in the international examinations e.g. GMAT, MCAT, TOEFL, IELTS etc, which shows the aspiration of the students studying here. Many institutes are interested to set up their facilities in Rajasthan to get students from the state.
World Economic Forum in collaboration with the state government has taken an initiative called Rajasthan Education Initiative (REI) to develop the primary and upper primary education in the state and benefiting about 4250 schools.
