Back to: Contemporary India and Education-Unit 1

The Kothari Commission was an ad hoc commission formed by the Government of India under the Chairmanship of Daulat Singh Kothari on 14 July 1964 and dissolved on 29 June 1966. He was the chairman of the University Grants Commissions (UGC) when the Kothari Commission was formed. The Commission consisted of twenty members who were experts in the education domain and based out of the UK, USA, Japan, Sweden, and France.

Objectives of the Kothari Commission (1964-66)

The main objectives of the Kothari Commission (1964-66) were as follows:

Provision of guidelines and policies for education development in India.
Evolution and finding of a general education pattern in India.
Examination of every aspect and domain of the Indian education system.

Aims of the Kothari Commission (1964-66)

The main aims of the Kothari Commission (1964-66) were as follows:

Free and Compulsory Education

The Kothari Commission put forward the need for free education for all children up to the age of 14. It emphasized the need for education up to a certain age.

Redefined Education

The Kothari Commission redefined education by restating its objectives and focusing on how education can influence and positively impact social and national issues and aspects.

Career-based Approach

The Kothari Commission focused on the need for education that makes individuals ready for the work front so that they can have a secure career.

Examined Educational Problems

The Commission examined and evaluated the educational problems existing in the Indian education system and strived to fix the issues.

Reasonable Pay for Teachers

The Commission put forward the need to offer reasonable and respectable pay for all the teachers belonging to all categories and subjects.

Impact of Kothari Commission (1964-66)

Free and Compulsory Education

The Kothari Commission put forward the need for free education for all children up to the age of 14. It emphasized the need for education up to a certain age.

Implementation of Vocational Education

The Kothari Commission implemented vocational education to make individuals ready for the work front so that they can have a secure career. It suggested that work experience must be made mandatory.

Use of Regional Languages

The Commission emphasized the use of regional languages as the medium of language for teaching for all stages of education.

Changed Educational Structure

It structured the education system as pre-school stage (1-3 years), primary education stage (4-8 years), lower secondary education stage, higher secondary education stage, and higher education stage.

Introduced Two Types of Secondary Schools

The Commission suggested two types of secondary schools – the high school (10 years course), and the higher secondary school (11 or 12 years course).

The Kothari Commission (1964-66) believed that the Indian education system did not prepare learners to take a career path. It focused on the need for education that makes individuals ready for the work front so that they can have a secure career. Hence, it put forward the need for vocational secondary education and extended the coverage of vocational courses. As a result, a multitude of vocational courses with varying duration of one to three years was introduced. This included the training of pre-primary and primary teachers, industrial training courses, trading courses, medical training courses, agricultural training courses, and more. According to the Commission, learners must be educated in manual work so that they can express their creativity. They focused on developing learners into self-sufficient individuals. Through its recommendations, the National Education Policy (1968) was formulated.

Objectives	Aims	Impact
education development	Free and Compulsory Education	Free and Compulsory Education
developing education pattern	Redefined Education	Implementation of Vocational Education
Examination	Career-based Approach	Use of Regional Languages
Education for everyone	Examined Educational Problems	Changed Educational Structure
Analysis of education System	Reasonable Pay for Teachers	Introduced Two Types of Secondary Schools