New Delhi: Sixty academic institutions, which have maintained high academic standards, were given higher autonomy by the University Grants Commission (UGC) on March 20.
In a media release in New Delhi, Union Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD) Prakash Javadekar said that the aim of the move was to improve the quality of education provided in India.
Giving details of the UGC decision, the minister said that 52 universities had been granted autonomy, including 5 central universities, 21 state universities, 24 deemed universities and 2 private universities. These universities will have the freedom to start new courses, skill development courses, off campus centres, research parks and any other new academic programmes, but they will remain within the ambit of the UGC. They can also enroll foreign students, hire foreign faculty, give extra incentives to faculty, provide academic collaborations, and start distance learning programmes.
The HRD minister added that eight colleges had also been granted autonomy. These colleges are free to set their own syllabus, conduct examinations, evaluate papers and announce results. However, degrees will be awarded by the university the colleges are affiliated to.
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jadavpur University, Punjab University, Hyderabad Central University, Homi Bhabha National Institute, Narsee Monjee Institute of Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and Symbiosis International in Pune are among the 60 autonomous institutions.
Based on the NAAC score and National Institutions Ranking Framework (NIRF), the institutions were graded into two categories.
The “Category I” institutions and universities are ranked among top 50 in the NIRF for two consecutive years or have at least 3.5 NAAC score. The performance of these institutions will be evaluated based on their self reports. They will also be exempted from the regular UGC inspections.
The “Category II” institutions obtained a NAAC score between 3.01 and 3.49 or were placed between 51 and 100 in NIRF. These institutions are also exempted from the UGC’s regular inspections but will be subject to more rigorous control in comparison to “Category I” institutions.
University of Mysore, Jain University in Bengaluru, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research are the institutions from Karnataka that have been granted “Category-II” status.
The HRD minister also said, “While the government has taken steps to liberalise higher education, the UGC today also decided to issue show-cause notices to three deemed universities for not meeting academic standards. The message is loud and clear that only quality will be rewarded.”
Institute of Advance Studies in Education in Rajasthan, Meenakshi Academy of Higher Education and Research, Chennai and Vinayaka Missions Research Foundation in Tamil Nadu will be issued show-cause notices for withdrawal of deemed university status. The Tandon Committee also had blacklisted them for quality deficiencies in 2009.
