J S Verma

Sriram Panchu’s article “A Tribute to J S Verma” (EPW, 11 May 2013) was informative and illuminated the imprint of the late Jagadish Sharan Verma on the Indian judicial system and public life. I would like to add that one of his key contributions was to our educational system through his report on teacher education. Justice Verma was the chairman of the high-powered commission appointed in May 2012 by the Supreme Court on teacher education.

Sriram Panchu’s article “A Tribute to J S Verma” (EPW, 11 May 2013) was informative and illuminated the imprint of the late Jagadish Sharan Verma on the Indian judicial system and public life. I would like to add that one of his key contributions was to our educational system through his report on teacher education. Justice Verma was the chairman of the high-powered commission appointed in May 2012 by the Supreme Court on teacher education. The commission submitted its report “Vision of Teacher Education in India: Quality and Regulatory Perspective” in August 2012. The report recognised the absence of an institutional mechanism in the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) to review norms and standards of teacher education institutions in a continuous and systematic way. The commission recommended that the NCTE should develop comprehensive guidelines for innovative teacher education programmes as well as a teacher education, assessment and accreditation centre. J S Verma has left us a worthwhile legacy.

Vargheese K A
Azim Premji University
BANGALORE