DR. Ajeenkya D.Y. Patil Chairman, D.Y. Patil Group of Institutions Are you satisfied with the importance given to education in the national development agenda? Education is so vital for human development, it can never be enough. However, I am pleased that governments at the Centre and in the states are beginning to appreciate the prime importance of education. How best to upgrade government colleges? Government colleges need more autonomy and simultaneously need to become more accountable. Performance should be measured against established parameters. Thinker/philosopher you admire most. Saints of Maharashtra. Your favourite Nobel laureate. Milton Friedman. Your leadership style. Heads-on, hands-off. Your favourite book on education. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell. For or against the RTE Act™s 25 percent reservation for underprivileged children in private schools? Very much for. Should education outlay be doubled by cutting defence expenditure? I don™t believe these are either-or options. Both sectors of the economy are of equal importance for different reasons. However, outlays for primary education should definitely be substantially increased. How satisfied are you with the progress of D.Y. Patil Group of institutions? I am quite satisfied with what we™ve achieved thus far. More needs to be done, and we are on the job. Everyday of our institutional existence we show commitment to deliver best possible learning experiences to our students and most satisfying experiences to our staff. Pessimistic or optimistic about Indian education? I am very optimistic about India and Indian education. I believe there are more opportunities than challenges.
