The State government has decided to shelve the Private Universities Bill and instead come up with model guidelines for opening private varsities in Maharashtra.
In this context the committee has noted with concern the unregulated growth of the private sector in education, in particular private institutions that have acquired the status of deemed universities chiefly to gain degree-granting powers with a commercial and profit-making motive.
The State Government has approved the first private university in the State to be set up by the Azim Premji Foundation under an Act of the Karnataka legislature. The university will promote quality education management programmes and training for teaching staff.
Under fire over alleged corruption in granting deemed university status to private educational institutes, the ministry of human resource development (HRD), which oversees education, on Friday ordered that the fee committees of state governments fix and regulate fees charged by such institutions.
The news that hit the headlines when the Orissa Assembly was in session in July last was the resistance of the Opposition to the Education Bill that sought the approval of the House for the opening of the three new private universities, namely, the Vedanta University, the Sri Sri University and the ICFAI University which would adopt the state-of-the-art technology in imparting education to the students.
Even as Punjab government is bracing itself to hold the statewide joint entrance test (JET) for admission to polytechnic colleges, the clamor by private colleges to discontinue the test has grown louder. With less than one-fourth seats being filled than the students taking the exams, the futility of the exercise, proving to be expensive for the cash-strapped government, is being questioned.
In the wake of anomalies unearthed in admissions to two self-financing medical colleges, the governing council of Kerala University of Health and Allied Sciences (KUHAS) has decided to verify the certificates of all students admitted to the colleges affiliated to it in 2012-13 and cross check the list of students given by colleges to the admissions supervisory committee headed by Justice P A Mohammed with those sent to the university for registration during the period.
A number of new private universities with liberal arts programs have sprung up in India. There were fewer than 20 such schools in 2005, and there are more than 100 now, according to a report by Shiv Nadar University.
A month after the Maharashtra cabinet cleared a mandatory 25% caste and socio-economic quota in the Private Universities Bill, the state has developed cold feet over its implementation.
The ruling BJP, in its hurry to sanction permission to establish new private universities in the State, has even bypassed the Karnataka State Higher Education Council by not getting the feasibility report from it to open certain universities.
Suspecting a bigger scam in granting of approval by Dental Council of India to private colleges, CBI today expanded its probe searching premises of three members of the Council's Executive committee and six private dental colleges.
Private engineering colleges in the state have reiterated their demand to fill up 10% seats through management or NRI quota for the 2012-13 academic session.
State government’s proposal to set up engineering colleges in the state with an aim to improve the quality of technical education for students with subsidised fees has come as jolt to private colleges in the state operating with poor infrastructure and inadequate teaching staff.
Even as the Supreme Court's verdict on National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for medical and dental courses is awaited, private colleges have started conducting their own entrance exams. Caught in the middle of the Centre versus state tussle are thousands of students who have no idea what the future holds for them.
Following the footsteps of private engineering colleges, private medical colleges have demanded a hike in the fees of under graduate medical course seats obtained through CET 2013.
The managements of private engineering colleges are of the view that arriving at an agreement with the government on the fee structure and seat sharing matrix for CET, 2013 will be difficult unless it considers hiking fees in private colleges.
Minister for Higher Education C.T. Ravi on Wednesday told the Legislative Assembly that all private universities in the State have to set aside 40 per cent of seats for students from Karnataka and follow the reservation system as per government orders.
Tabling of Private Universities Bill raised a furore in the legislative council on Thursday, with JD(S) leader M C Nanaiah alleging a ‘business deal’ was being struck, to allow setting up private universities in the state.
The Legislative Council on Tuesday gave its nod for setting up three more private universities in the State, CMR University, New Baldwin University and Presidency University.
Legislative council on Tuesday approved the establishment of three private universities in the state and of them all the three are located in Bangalore. Universities are, one will be started by C M R Janaradhana trust , second by Baldwin education society and the third by Presidency education society .
The bills which were passed in the Council in a matter of ten minutes, without any discussion, saw its members stage a walkout in protest against the government’s move. Though members in the Assembly did not staunchly oppose the bills, they did question the credentials of the varsities proposed to be set up.
Having opposed the setting up of private universities in Himachal Pradesh, claiming that in the name of universities, shops are being opened, the Congress party has finally succeeded in starting a government probe into the opening of such universities. Besides checking the records, revenue officials are conducting physical verification of these universities to find out the truth.
Both the Houses of the State Legislature adopted four more private university Bills on the last day of the budget session amid protest by the Opposition parties, who took exception to the indiscriminate and the hurried manner in which approvals were being granted to the private universities raising suspicion of involvement of “business interests”.
The state government has recommended the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) not to extend the approval of three engineering colleges in the state for the academic year 2013-'14.
Eleven private dental colleges of Punjab have admitted 456 students to the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) course even though they had “not qualified” the 2012 Pre-Medical Entrance Test (PMET), according to a “most urgent” communication of the Dental Council of India (DCI).
We welcome the government's plan to set up an accreditation council which will independently review the academic standards of private universities. This will increase transparency of the institutions, allowing people to know university rankings and to ensure healthy competition among private educational institutions and quality education overall.
After the state legislative assembly passed a bill paving the way for a private university, Techno India University, last year, the state cabinet on January 19 approved proposals for setting up more private universities here.
The State government, under fire for the hurried passing of Bills allowing over 15 private universities to be set up, has given them permission to acquire educational institutions, albeit with its prior approval.
To become a knowledge economy in the true sense of the term our country needs many more quality higher education institutes (over and above the ones that already exist) in the private sector. This is because the government aided higher education colleges in the league of the IIT’s and IIM’s manage to accommodate only a very small percentage of meritorious candidates every year.
In a major breakthrough in the Maharshi Dayanand University answer sheet scam in Rohtak, the police on Tuesday nabbed two professors of private engineering colleges affiliated to the varsity.
Officers and employees of aided private colleges in Madhya Pradesh will be given 101 percent dearness allowance, according to a press release here on Thursday
The state government has decided to introduce a bill that would facilitate the setting up of private universities in Bihar, a move that would herald a new era in the higher education sector.
The state government is working on a Bill that will be presented in the state assembly for the framing of an Act to facilitate the opening of private universities in the state. It would be tabled in the state assembly during the current session itself, said education minister P K Shahi on Wednesday.
Private engineering colleges have taken strong exception to the state government's decision to increase seats in government-run colleges while stopping the private ones from hiking their intake capacity.
After downsizing, private engineering colleges in the state are planning substantial increase in fees from the forthcoming academic year. At least 40 private engineering colleges have been pleading to revise their annual fees.
Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh on Monday said the government will not issue licences to new private universities in the state, saying they are "not needed in a small state".
The government's move to bring a Bill for facilitating the opening of private universities in the state has evoked mixed response among the academics. While some have reservations against the private sector investment in higher education, others are not opposed to the idea of opening private universities.
The Karnataka Janata Paksha (KJP) on Friday alleged that there was large-scale corruption in granting permission to establish over a dozen private universities in the State.
In the run-up to Karnataka’s forthcoming assembly polls, the B S Yeddyurappa-led KJP has sought to put the ruling BJP on the defensive by alleging large-scale corruption in the Jagadish Shettar regime’s decision in favour of granting permission to establish over a dozen of private universities in the State.
Even as calls are growing louder against the State government for allowing as many as 17 private universities to be set up in the State, Governor and Chancellor of universities H.R. Bhardwaj has given his approval to eight of them. This means that eight of the Bills that were passed by the Legislative Assembly and Council are now Acts, paving the way for their enforcement.
Four more Sambalpur-based private colleges have come under scrutiny even as the Crime Branch on Tuesday arrested Subash Barik, a close aide of Chairman of Shandilya College of Science and Commerce Kartik Chandra Barik.
Speaking about the modus operandi of the incident, Sharma said Behera had provided the question paper of physics on March 6 evening to Barik. Crime Branch officials suspect involvement of more private colleges in the question paper leak incident.
Minister of State for Higher Education Badri Narayan Patra on Thursday assured the Assembly that the Government will review the functioning and the fee structure of the private colleges.
The state government has reduced the land holding limit for establishing private universities in the state. Accordingly, private universities will now be allowed to be set on an area of around 10 acres as against 50 acres previously.
The issue of allowing private universities to set up campuses in Himachal Pradesh came up in the state assembly Tuesday with members raising questions about the credentials of some of these institutions.
Himachal Pradesh government stated in the assembly that it is not certain about the authenticity of degrees being provided by the fifteen private universities which came up in the state during last BJP rule.
The issue of permission granted to large number of private universities to set up campuses in Himachal Pradesh and land purchased by them, rocked Assembly on Tuesday with members questioning the credentials of these universities and the degrees being awarded by them.
While one of the focus areas of Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summit 2013 was knowledge-sharing through partnership with foreign education institutes, technical colleges back home are tottering to collapse.
The state will have three private universities by the next academic session. A nod could subsequently be given to five more following a scrutiny of their applications, which is now in progress.
ADG (CB) Bijay Sharma said Debendra Behera, suspended deputy secretary of Council of Higher Secondary Education (CHSE) in Sambalpur, had entered into a deal with private colleges to provide them question papers for money. Speaking about the modus operandi, Sharma said Behera had designed two modules to charge the private colleges.
Students taking admission to technical institutions affiliated to the Uttar Pradesh Technical University (UPTU) across the state are likely to see a change in fee structure as fee in all technical courses running in private engineering and management colleges in the state is being fixed.
While most private engineering colleges have decided to resume classes next week, government colleges are awaiting a notification from the Higher Education Department to reopen.
In a major setback to private engineering colleges operating without proper infrastructure and required faculty, the state government has ordered a "physical inspection" to ascertain the actual facilities available in the institutions.
Private engineering colleges plan to hike their hostel and mess fee by about 20 per cent this year on account of the rising prices of foodstuff like rice and cereals. Students, who pay Rs 10,000 already as hostel fee, may soon have to shell out more as a result.
In a major breakthrough in the Plus-II science question paper leak, the Crime Branch of Odisha Police have arrested heads of three privately run colleges.
Scores of students, led by the district unit of the Students Federation of India (SFI), staged a protest here on Thursday condemning the opening of private universities in the State.
At a time when there are growing concerns over the establishment of many private universities, University Grants Commission (UGC) is working on a new set of regulations to govern the functioning of private universities in the country.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today said the Government will not issue licences to new private universities in the State, saying they are “not needed in a small State”.
A bill to establish three new private universities in the state will be tabled in the assembly next week. The Gujarat Private Universities (Amendment) Bill will pave the path for establishing Lakulish Yoga University in Ahmedabad, Team Lease Skills University-ITI at Tarsali in Vadodara, and CU Shah University in Wadhwan.
When the University Grants Commission (UGC) expert committee that was set up to amend the regulations on private universities meets here next week, it will discuss the concerns expressed by the Supreme Court in 2005, when it delivered its ruling in Prof. Yashpal & Anr vs State of Chhattisgarh and others while endorsing the UGC (Establishment of and Maintenance of Standards in Private Universities) Regulations, 2003.
With the mushrooming of private universities in the country, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has constituted an expert committee to revisit the clauses in the UGC (Establishment of and Maintenance of Standards in Private Universities) Regulations, 2003.
The state government on Monday cleared decks for setting up of private universities in Bihar. A bill in this regard will soon be moved in the state legislative assembly by the state government.
Even as the National Accreditation Regulatory Authority Bill for higher education remains to be passed by Parliament, the country's first private accreditation body came into being on Friday.
The Nitish regime has cleared the decks for establishing private varsities with the passing of the Bihar Private University Bill, 2013, by the Legislative Assembly.
The bill on private universities is to facilitate setting up of three new private universities in the state. These are Lakulish Yoga University at Ahmedabad, Team Lease Skills University-ITI at Tarsali in Vadodara and CU Shah University at Wadhwan in Surendranagar.
Delivering a lecture on ‘Higher Education in India-emerging Challenges’ at OU here Saturday, Ved Prakash said private universities have a significant role to play in the education field.
The private university Act was enacted in 2007 to reduce the burden on state universities, but only 11 private universities could start ever since. The outcome is rising number of students continue to put a strain on government universities.
While there has been no official communication from the government on reopening of colleges under its administration, many private engineering colleges in and around the city have asked their students to get back to classes on Monday after close to a month’s closure owing to the anti-Sri Lanka protests.
Releasing land bought for setting up private universities in Himachal Pradesh just got tougher with the state assembly today passing a law increasing the time frame from 25 to 40 years for permitting any land use change should an institution fail to function during the period.
Bihar State Private University Bill 2013 was passed on Tuesday by voice vote in the state assembly, clearing the deck for setting up of private universities and related institutions of higher learning in the state.
Among those seeking their help are private universities such as Amity University and NIIT University, school chains such as Indus World school, and education solution companies. The education sector has hitherto relied on word-of-mouth publicity to hire people.
In clear violation of the Supreme Court of India's orders and audacious contempt of law, five reputed colleges have been caught in the middle of the rot in the country's medical education system. A CNN-IBN sting operation covering three states has exposed how private medical and dental colleges are illegally selling post graduate seats to the highest bidders.
Private engineering colleges in the state urged the state government on Saturday to release the arrears pertaining to tuition fee reimbursement for the academic year 2012-13 immediately.
To improve treatment for tuberculosis, the Department of Health and Family Welfare is collaborating with private hospitals and private medical colleges in the State.
Rajasthan Technical University (RTU) has an outstanding amount of Rs 4 crore on 20 private engineering colleges on account of development fees yet to be paid by them for the last five years despite repeated reminders. The university has now decided to tighten the noose on defaulters while sending them final notices informing to stop affiliation of major defaulters and to deduct number of seats of minor defaulters.
Uncertainty continues over the method of admission for MBBS and BDS courses in private medical colleges as they have advertised to conduct their own entrance tests. Things will depend on the Supreme Court verdict on whether the colleges will draw students from National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) or from their own entrance exam.
Engineering aspirants' wait for clarity on fee structure in private colleges for various courses just got longer. The deadline set by the higher education minister to finalize fee of private engineering colleges under CET expired on Wednesday with the department of higher education remaining silent.
The non-aided D Ed colleges' management association has alleged that the recent move of issuing show-cause notices for compliance to the colleges was part of an official conspiracy to close down all non-aided private colleges imparting diploma courses in teaching.
As many as 150 students of three private colleges, studying bachelor of dental studies (BDS), knocked the doors of Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya ( DAVV), blaming the authorities for poor results and assessment in internal examination here recently.
A senior functionary of N M Institute of Engineering and Technology (NMIET) was arrested here on Tuesday, a day after a girl of the private institute allegedly committed suicide following allegation of harassment over non-payment of dues.
Clearing the decks for private institutions to enter the field of higher education in Maharashtra, the state cabinet on Tuesday approved model guidelines for opening private varsities.
The state government on Wednesday withdrew its earlier bill on self-financed private universities to include 50% caste-based reservation. The bill was passed in the assembly in August 2011, but the governor had refused to sign it into law in the absence of the reservation clause. The amended bill is expected to be approved in the ongoing or monsoon session.
Decks have been cleared for private institutions to enter the field of higher education in Bihar with the state assembly passing the Bihar Private Universities Bill, 2013 on Tuesday.
Bihar State Private University Bill 2013 was passed on Tuesday by voice vote in the state assembly, clearing the deck for setting up of private universities and related institutions of higher learning in the state.
Even as the state government has paved the way for the opening of private universities in Bihar, the higher education scenario is unlikely to change much. A vast majority of the state's youth would continue to receive their higher education in the existing colleges and universities which depend solely on government grants. And, the state exchequer would have to cough up big grants to these government-funded institutions.
There is absolutely no demand for more engineering colleges in the state. It is going to be tough for the new private colleges to find students and faculty. Nearly 25,000 BE seats were vacant last year and it will be extremely difficult to woo students
Even before the SSC examination results are out the corporate Intermediate colleges have already commenced classes for the first year Intermediate students in the name of bridge course, flouting the rules of the Board of Intermediate Education.
The state government on Wednesday indicated that it was open to initiating the process of derecognizing 17 private medical and dental colleges found to have violated norms during the admission process in 2012-13.
JKBOSE has made it clear that private colleges have breached the rules since JKBOSE approved admission of only 12,000 candidates for the session 2011-2013 whereas colleges added 14,000 more. Adherence to rules under no circumstances should have been grossly violated and if it happened the problem lies with the administration of the private colleges and institutions
Various teachers and student organisations opposed the proposal to allow autonomous colleges in the state at the hearing organised by the N R Madhva Menon committee appointed by the Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC) on Thursday to discuss the draft report on the scheme.
The delay by the State government in deciding on fee structure and seat-sharing matrix for admission to professional colleges through the Common Entrance Test (CET) has irked private engineering colleges.
All Kerala Private College Teachers’ Association (AKPCTA) has called upon the Higher Education Council not to make recommendation for the introduction of autonomous colleges in the State.