Elitist Education

Business World has a good piece on the role of elitist education institutes in advancing the cause of higher education. Indeed I find the whole debate of making elite educational institutes as some sort of a discrimination against lesser mortals misguided. What is needed is equal opportunity to all to study in such institutes not an equal right to.
What this implies? Give scholarships even 100% + living expense to those who can make it into such institutes. This is especially easy for post graduate courses. But let the competition be brutal to gain an entry into this club. In case of pure sciences and some arts discipline like psychology etc, it will dramatically improve the standard of research. Let the aim of such institutes be primarily research though there is some value in preparing technicians of a particular trade too. After all, its the applied aspects that are often more relevant to life in short term.
10000 such top end graduates coming out every year over a 10 year period will provide the thought leadership that will raise the bar across the nation.