Lok Sabha Question No. 2705 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-08-05
Subject: Students going Abroad
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: PARESH RAWAL, MAHEISH GIRRI

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.2705

TO BE ANSWERED ON 05.08.2015

**Students going Abroad**

2705.  	SHRI PARESH RAVAL:

SHRI MAHEISH GIRRI **:**

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

(a) whether the number of students going abroad for higher education has increased over the last three years and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether the Government has analyzed the reasons for such trend and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;

(c) whether the Government has any plan to keep the data of the students studying abroad and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and

(d) whether the Government is taking steps to upgrade higher education to attract students from other countries if so, the details thereof?

**ANSWER**

MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

**(SMT SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)**

(a) and (b): Studies abroad being a matter of individual will and choice, information regarding the number of Indian students going abroad is not maintained by the Ministry of Human Resource Development. Moreover, there are no restrictions on Cross-Border Students Mobility and such mobility can be owing to variety of reasons such as affordability, access to bank loans, exposure to foreign societies, aptitude for particular branch of studies, inability to gain admission to top Indian Institutes due to capacity limitations etc.

(c): 	Yes, Madam. A meeting of Ministry of Human Resource Development and Ministry of External Affairs was held on 15.07.2015 to discuss *inter alia* on measures that need to be taken to develop systems for an improved and substantive database of students travelling abroad for studies.

(d): 	Upgrading Indian Higher Educational Institutions is a continuous process. However, the Government has taken various measures for improving the standards of higher education in the country. The University Grants Commission (UGC) has introduced the semester system, the regular updating of curricula and Choice Based Credit Systems (CBCS), etc. It has issued the UGC Minimum Qualifications for Appointment of Teachers and other Academic Staff in Universities and Colleges and Measures for the Maintenance of Standards in Higher Education, Regulations, 2010 for improving the standard of teaching in Indian universities. It has also issued the Mandatory Assessment and Accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions, Regulations, 2012 whereby all eligible higher educational institutions are required to get themselves accredited. The UGC has also issued the Promotion and Maintenance of Standards of Academic Collaboration between Indian and Foreign Educational Institutions, Regulations 2012, which provide a framework for academic collaboration between Indian and foreign higher educational institutions.

UGC also implements various schemes aimed at improving the quality of higher education, such as Universities with Potential for Excellence (UPE), Colleges with Potential for Excellence (CPE), Special Assistance Programme (SAP), Centres with Potential for Excellence in a Particular Area (CPEPA) etc.

The All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) has informed that in order to promote quality of technical education, it has introduced various schemes such as Research Promotion Scheme, Faculty Development Programme, Visiting Professorship, National Faculty in Engineering and Technology with Industrial Collaboration (NAFETIC), Innovation Programme Scheme and Quality Improvement Programme etc. It has also issued the Mandatory Accreditation of all Programs/Courses in Technical Education Institutions, University Departments and Institutions Deemed to be Universities imparting Technical Education Regulations, 2014 which makes it mandatory for each technical education institution, university department and institution Deemed to be University imparting technical education to get its programs/courses accredited. AICTE has also issued Regulations for Entry and Operation of Foreign Universities/Institutions imparting Technical Education in India to facilitate collaboration and partnerships between Indian and Foreign Universities/Institutions in the field of technical education, research and training.

Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA), the overall quality of existing State higher educational institutions is sought to be improved by ensuring their conformity to prescribed norms and standards and adoption of accreditation as a mandatory quality assurance framework. Certain academic, administrative and governance reforms are a precondition for receiving funding under RUSA.

The Government has also established new Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian Institutes of Management to enhance the quality of education in Indian Higher Educational Institutes.

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