Lok Sabha Question No. 91 (STARRED), answered on 2018-12-17
Subject: Higher Education System
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: JYOTIRADITYA MADHAVRAO SCINDIA, KAMAL NATH

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

LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION No.91 TO BE ANSWERED ON 17.12.2018

## Higher Education System

## *91. SHRI JYOTIRADITYA M. SCINDIA: SHRI KAMAL NATH:

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

(a) whether several renowned educationists have urged the Government to re-imagine and reconstruct the country's higher education system;

(b) if so, the details thereof;

(c)  whether  the  Universities  in  the  country  are  facing  various  challenges  ranging  from inadequate funds, teachers' shortage to falling enrolment levels; and

(d) if so, the steps taken/proposed to be taken by the Government to make the universities capable to tap the potential of our burgeoning young population?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (SHRI PRAKASH JAVADEKAR)

(a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  to  (d)  OF  LOK  SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *91 FOR 17.12.2018 ASKED BY SHRI JYOTIRADITYA M. SCINDIA AND SHRI KAMAL NATH, HON'BLE MEMBERS  OF PARLIAMENT, REGARDING HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM.

(a) & (b): Over the last few decades the scale and complexities of India's Higher Education sector  has  increased  manifold  and  is  now  considered  to  be  one  of  the  largest  higher education  systems  in  the  world  with  over  nine  hundred  Universities  and  forty  thousand colleges.

The need to address the growing concerns on the performance of regulating bodies in  Higher  Education  has  been  discussed  and  debated  by  various  Commissions  and Committees on Higher Education, including the Hari Gautam Committee (2015) and TSR Subramanian Committee (2016).

All  these  Committees  have  recommended  re-structuring  of  the  regulatory  and professional bodies. In addition, the Department related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human  Resource  Development  in  its 265 th report (2015-16)  recommended  for strengthening of the University Grants Commission (UGC) for effective regulation of higher education. The Union Government also announced its intent for reforms in the University Grants Commission in its Budget 2017-18. This was followed by the recommendations of the  NITI  Aayog  for  undertaking  core  reforms  in  the  University  Grants  Commission,  in August, 2017.

(c):  There  has  been  a  continuous  increase  in  the  funds  disbursed  by  the  UGC  to  the Universities  and  Colleges.  The  details  of  funds  disbursed  to  Universities  during  the  last three years are as follows:

|   S.No. | Year    |   Funds disbursed (in lakh) |
|---------|---------|-----------------------------|
|       1 | 2015-16 |            888628           |
|       2 | 2016-17 |            905882           |
|       3 | 2017-18 |                 1.08406e+06 |

Further, as per report of the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE), the Gross Enrolment Ratio in higher education in the age group 18-23 years has gone up to 25.8% with total enrolment estimated to be 36.6 million during 2017-18, as compared to 23% with total enrolment estimated to 32.3 million, during 2013-14.

(d): From the statistics, it is evident that all the challenges being faced by the Universities are being addressed by the Government. The Government has taken several steps to aid the Universities, which inter-alia, includes the following:

- i. As  announced  during  the  Budget  Speech  of  2016-17,  the  Government  has  created Higher  Education  Financing  Agency  (HEFA),  to  provide  assistance  to  top  quality higher educational institutions for improving physical infrastructure, research laboratories  and  equipment  etc.  so  that  the  country  can  offer  a  superior  learning environment to students, rise in global rankings and emerge as an educational hub.

An  amount  of  Rs.  1.57  lakh  crores  has  been  spent  from  2013  to  2018  for  higher education. In addition, an amount of Rs. 8091.84 crores has been sanctioned under HEFA.

- ii. There  are  5606  posts  vacant  out  of  a  total  of  17092  sanctioned  teaching  posts  in Central Universities. Vacancies at various levels occur due to retirements, resignations,  deaths,  deputations,  expansion  and  opening  of  new  Universities  etc. Thus, occurring and filling up of vacant teaching posts in Universities, is a continuous and ongoing process. Universities are autonomous institutions established under the Central Act, Provincial Act or State Act and the onus of filling up of vacant teaching posts  lies  with  them.  The  Ministry  and  UGC  continuously  monitor  vacancy  related issues with Central Universities.
- iii. In  order  to  tap  the  potential  of  our  burgeoning  youth  population,  the  Government  is committed to improve the quality of education and it is a continuous ongoing process. Several  initiatives  are  undertaken  to  improve  the  quality  of  teaching  and  learning. Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA),  Global Initiative for  Academics Network (GIAN), Impacting Research, Innovation & Technology (IMPRINT), Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP), Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya National  Mission  on  Teachers  and  Teaching  (PMMMNMTT),  Study  Webs  of  ActiveLearning  for  Young  Aspiring  Minds  (SWAYAM),  National  Digital  Library,  campus connect programme, Uchhatar Avishkar Yojana, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA), Annual Refresher  Programme  in  Teaching  (ARPIT),  and  Leadership  for  Academicians Programme (LEAP)  are being implemented to improve the quality of higher education.
- iv. Further  for  promotion  of  innovation,  cognitive  thinking  and  improving  the  quality  of Ph.D programmes, the Government has devised schemes in all the fields of education viz. IMPRINT (Impacting Research Innovation and Technology) for technical research, IMPRESS (Impactful Policy Research in Social Sciences) for social sciences research, SPARC (Scheme  for  Promotion  of  Academic  Research  and  Collaboration)  for  joint research  with  Foreign  Universities  and  STARS  (Scheme  for  Transformational  and Advanced Research in Fundamental Sciences) for research in fundamental sciences.
- v. The UGC has also started three schemes, namely Community College, B.Voc Degree Programme,  and  Deen  Dayal  Upadhay  KAUSHAL  Kendras  in  Universities  and Colleges for imparting skill development based vocational courses offering Certificate/Diploma/Advance  Diploma/B.Voc/M.Voc  and  Research  level  programme with multiple exit and entry options enabling vertical mobility of the students.
- vi. Considering that autonomy is pivotal to promoting excellence in higher education, the University  Grants  Commission  (Categorization  of  Universities  (only)  for  grant  of Graded Autonomy) Regulations, 2018 and the University Grants Commission (Conferment of Autonomous Status Upon Colleges and Measures for Maintenance of Standards  in  Autonomous  Colleges)  Regulations,  2018  have  been  notified.  These Regulations  will  provide  the  much  needed  impetus  to  improve  quality  and  promote autonomy in higher educational institutions.
- vii. The  parameters  of  Assessment  and  Accreditation  have  been  revised  by  National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), which focus more on public disclosures  than  peer  inspections.  Further,  owing  to  the  constraints  in  the  existing capacity for accreditation, the University  Grants  Commission  (Recognition  and Monitoring  of  Assessment  and  Accreditation  Agencies)  Regulation,  2018  has  been notified to encourage multiple government/semi-government agencies for accreditation of higher educational institutions.

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