By Bobby Chacko-
The University Grants Commission has drafted norms facilitating educational institutions, such as Yale, Oxford, Harvard and more, to set up campuses in India, providing them with a world-class education without incurring high costs.
The Indian government is preparing to legislate in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s suggestion that the campuses of world-renowned institutions should be made more efficient in India. “The Australian government and some foreign universities have expressed interest in the proposal,” Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal said in a statement.
The UGC draft will allow universities such as Yale and Oxford set up campuses in India and offer students world-class education at an affordable cost.
India has many hardworking and bright students, who qualify for the highest standard of university education in India, which is quite high, but not as high as Oxford.
That’s because Oxford have the best teachers and students in the Uk, in contrast with India which have competent teachers, but not always with the level of expertise and clarity as Oxford University.
India’s higher education system is still very competitive on the global scale, and was ranked 26th in the world in the QS Higher Education System Strength Rankings 2018, and is especially well-known for the quality of its education in engineering and technology subjects
On Thursday, 5 January, UGC chairpersonM Jagadesh Kumar announced draft norms for establishing campuses of foreign higher educational institutions in the country in line with the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 and invited suggestions and feedback from the public on the same.
The move to “internationalise” education is a step to overhaul the country’s heavily-regulated education sector to enable Indian students to obtain foreign qualifications at an affordable cost and make India an attractive global study destination. The move will also help overseas institutions to tap the nation’s young population.
Ambitions by the Narendra Modi-led government has taken this step to open up India’s education sector, such attempts of allowing foreign institutes to set up campuses in India has been made in the past.
The first was in 1995 when a Bill was introduced but could not go forward. In 2005-2006, too, the draft law could only go up to the Cabinet stage.
While unveiling the draft norms on Thursday, UGC chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar said the foreign universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) will approval from the UGC to set up their campuses in India.
He explained that universities who want to set up their campuses in India should be ranked within the top 500 of overall or subject-wise global rankings. Universities, who have secured subject-wise ranking, will be allowed to offer same subjects in their Indian campuses.
This means universities such as America’s Yale, Stanford, Harvard and British institutions like University of Cambridge, Oxford King’s College could all set up campuses in India, permitting Indian students to get top-notch education without having to travel.
The UGC chairperson made it clear that institutes wishing to set up shop in India will have to offer full-time programmes in physical mode and not online or distance learning.
The institutes that come to India will have the flexibility to determine their admission process and criteria to admit domestic and foreign students, as per the draft norms.
“There will be a provision for need-based scholarships in all these universities,” Kumar explained.
The draft regulation does not mention anything about reservations norms for these
The selected institutions will have the flexibility to recruit faculty and staff from India and abroad as per its recruitment norms and will likely have the last call on the qualifications, salary structure, and other conditions of service for appointing faculty and staff.
However, they shall ensure that the qualifications of the faculty appointed shall be at par with the main campus of the country of origin. and that the foreign faculty appointed to teach at the Indian campus shall stay at the campus in India for a reasonable period.
The draft is expected to be completed in the first half of 2023 given the universities two years to set up campuses in India and granting them permission for 10 years. The institute can then apply for an extension one year before the expiry of the period — that is in the ninth year of operations.
Allowing foreign institutes to India will give our students a chance at better education. As Kumar said to Indian Express, “This will ensure that all our students — there are around 40 million pursuing higher education — have access to global quality education. At least, the living cost will be minimised as compared to studying abroad.”
The move will enable those students who are poor or from the lower middle class households who cannot afford to study abroad in countries like the Uk to obtain the education right on their doorsteps