Education in Himachal Pradesh

IIT Mandi/Source:Wikimedia

Education influences the human psyche and allows one to realize his or her full potential. The Government of Himachal Pradesh has identified the importance of education and worked toward the development of its human resource. The literacy rate of Himachal Pradesh has significantly improved over time and now is one of the leading states in literacy. From mere 31.71 per cent in 1971, it has improved to 82.80 per cent in 2011. The state has also seen a significant improvement in female literacy thanks to various measures taken by the State and Central Government.

Himachal Pradesh Department of Education
The Government of Himachal Pradesh has setup the HP Department of Education in 1971 which oversee the activities and programmes related to education in the state. It also organizes different training programmes for teachers so that they can be as productive and modern as they can in their teaching methods.

As of 2016, there are 11327 primary schools, 2930 primary schools, 1570 secondary schools and 2212 senior secondary schools in the state.

In terms of Pupil Teacher Ratio, Himachal Pradesh is remarkably ahead of other Indian states. Himachal Pradesh PTR at primary level is 12, at upper primary level is 10, at secondary level is 18 and at senior secondary level is 14.

Higher Education in Himachal Pradesh
In terms of higher education i.e. university education, there are total 348 colleges in the state affiliated to 25 universities. There are also 446 standalone higher education institudes in the state.

Himachal Pradesh University
Himachal Pradesh University is the first university in the state of Himachal Pradesh. It was established on 22nd July 1970 and Dr. RK Singh was its first vice-chancellor. In addition, it also runs the Intenational Centre for Distance Educational Open Learning (ICDEOL) for students who cannot attend regular college and wished to complete their college level education.

CSK HP Krishi Vishwavidyalaya
Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishwavidyalaya or simply CSK HP Krishi Vishwavidyalaya is the first agricultural university in the state. It was established in 1966 as the College of Agriculture (Punjab University) at Palampur. Later, it was upgraded to the university in November 1978.

Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry is another famous state agricultural university of Himachal Pradesh. It was earlier started as Himachal Agricultural College in 1962 affliated to Punjab University. Later, it became part of Himachal Pradesh University in 1970 and on 1 December 1985, it was upgraded to the state university and named after Yashwant Singh Parmar, the first Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.

Other prominent Government institution in Himachal Pradesh are IIT Mandi and NIT Hamirpur.

Source
1. Educational Statistics at Glance 2018, MHRD, Government of India
2. Government of Himachal Pradesh