Lok Sabha Question No. 2094 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Foreign Students
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: CHANDRA PRAKASH JOSHI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2094 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.01.2018

## Foreign Students

2094. SHRI CHANDRA PRAKASH JOSHI

Will the Minister of HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- ( a ) the  total  number  of  foreign  students  granted  VISA  by  the  Government during  the  last  three  years  and  the  corresponding  courses  which  they  had opted for;
- ( b )   whether the Government has conducted any survey as to determine which of the domestic institutions/universities has witnessed the highest influx of the students from foreign universities and if so, the details  thereof;
- ( c ) if  not,  the  reasons  therefor  and  the  possibility  of  such  survey  to  be conducted in future; and
- ( d ) whether the Government has initiated  any scheme for  encouraging the institutes/Universities for enrolling more foreign students in their courses for upgrading the standard of these institutes/universities?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (DR. SATYA PAL SINGH)

- (a):  The  number of foreign students granted Visa by the  Government during the last three years and in 2017(upto 28.12.2017) is tabulated as  under:
- (b) & (c): The Association of Indian Universities (AIU) has published an occasional paper 2017/1 'Internationalisation of Higher Education in India - Annual Survey of International  Students  in  India  2014-15'  in  which  the  details  of  foreign  students studying  in  India  University-wise,  in  respect  of  the  member  institutions  of  the Association of  Indian  Universities,  is  available.  This  paper  can be  accessed at

*upto 28.12.2017

| Sl. No.   | Year   | No. of Foreigners Granted   | No. of Foreigners Granted   |
|-----------|--------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|
|           |        | Student Visa                | Research Visa               |
| 1.        | 2014   | 32851                       | 1467                        |
| 2.        | 2015   | 37643                       | 1872                        |
| 3.        | 2016   | 37947                       | 2113                        |
| 4.        | 2017*  | 36887                       | 2100                        |

http://www.aiu.ac.in/International/AIU\_International\_Students\_2017%20(2).pdf.

(d): There are 10% supernumerary seats created in IIT and 15% for NITs for foreign students. The NITs admit students through the Direct Admission of Students from Abroad (DASA) scheme. UGC encourages the institutes/Universities  for  enrolling more  foreign  students  in  their  courses  for  upgrading  the  standard  of  these institutes/universities, the Central Government and the University Grants Commission  (UGC)  are  taking  various  measures  to  improve  quality  of  higher education by way of taking several initiatives so as to automatically attract foreign students  to  study  in  India.  The  UGC  undertakes  maintenance  of  standards  in teaching, research and quality assurance in Universities,  Deemed to be Universities and Colleges through framing and notifying regulations, schemes and disbursing grants to the eligible institutions. The  UGC  has  notified several regulations with a view to sustain and improve the quality of higher education and to undertake        academic       reforms.        The        regulations        are       available a t http://www.ugc.ac.in/page/UGC-Regulations.aspx. One  of the recent and prominent initiatives of Government of India is declaration of Educational Institutions as lnstitutions of Eminence (IoE) to provide world class education to the Indian Students  within the country. The Government  has  approved  the  Regulatory Architecture in the  form of UGC(Declaration  of  Government  Institutions  as Institutions of Eminence) Guidelines, 2017 for public Institutions  and  UGC (Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2017 for private Institutions for setting up / upgrading of 20 Institutions (10 from public sector & 10 from  private  sector)  as  world  class  teaching  and  research  institutions  known  as Institutions  of  Eminence  for  which  applications  have  been  received.  While  a Government lnstitution declared as an lnstitution of Eminence, is free to choose its path  to  become  an  institution  of  global  repute,  the  said  guidelines  envisage  to satisfy  one  of  the  parameters  viz.  'there  should  be  a  reasonably  good  mix  of domestic and foreign students'.

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