Why No EWS Quota Guidelines for Foreign Universities

The governmentdecision to open doors for foreign universities and the proposed guidelines have raised many questions. Experts are concerned about its impact on universities and students in India. It is quite surprising that on the one hand the government talks about Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) quota in educational institutions and on the otherit has also…

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Mohd Naushad Khan

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The governmentdecision to open doors for foreign universities and the proposed guidelines have raised many questions. Experts are concerned about its impact on universities and students in India. It is quite surprising that on the one hand the government talks about Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) quota in educational institutions and on the otherit has also opened doors for foreign universities without any cap on fee structure.

Will it not further commercialise our educational framework and encroach our own educational system. Can we ever think of establishing ITT, IIM campuses abroad with the same set of guidelines? A change in policy that was indicated in the new National Education Policy has finally been implemented by the Modi government, allowing international universities to establish campuses in India. The University Grants Commission (UGC) released some regulations recently. UGC has added a condition that all courses provided by foreign universities must be taught in offline mode and no online sessions are allowed.

Some of the guidelines of the UGC are: Foreign universities can open campuses in India after getting approval from University Grants Commission and it would be valid for only 10 years. According to the UGC, international universities with campuses in the nation may only provide full-time programmes in physical mode; online or distance learning is not permitted, according to the panel’s chairman, M. Jagadesh Kumar.

According to Kumar, these colleges will be allowed to create their own admission policy and fees. Foreign institutions would also need to guarantee that the standard of instruction at their campuses in India is on par with that at their main campus. UGC stated that matters involving funds and funding would be handled in accordance with the Foreign Exchange Management Act.

According to Professor Aslam, Former Vice-Chancellor, IGNOU, New Delhi, Member of the Collegium of Eminent Social Scientists constituted by the ICSSR and Fellow EDI of the World Bank, “I sincerely feel concerned the way higher education in general and institutions of higher learning in particular are being treated during last few years. There is a lack of consistency and direction in policy pronouncements made one after the other when the education system is still struggling to come out of corona jolt which adversely impacted it. Our hopes were raised when New Education Policy envisioned consolidation of higher education institutions (HEIs), creation of large multidisciplinary universities, and national research council to support research. I was hoping against hope that it will help in improving the presence of Indian institutions in the global rankings as well.”

Professor Aslam added, “Instead of proposing the creation of international campuses of universities from developed countries, UGC could have focused on facilitating HEI’s becoming a global higher education destination in its own right. On the one hand the UGC proposal envisages to enable Indian students to obtain foreign qualifications at affordable cost, but on the other hand it gives full freedom to these universities to decide fee structure. It is simply self-contradictory. Based on our conviction and capability, we need to build institutions of global excellence at a level which can compete with international institutions, rather than outsourcing higher education. We should aim to create transformative experiences for our students, getting them ready for life and work, our main goal should be to offer life-changing experiences, and to shape the world with the talent, knowledge and learning capability that we share.”

“There are many perspectives in the press around the pros and cons of having foreign entities (universities and other authorised entities) establish campuses in India. On the one hand they are thought to increase choice for students, improve quality of education and research and retain talent, there are also concerns about a level playing ground, equitable and affordable access to education, freedom of speech on campus and profiteering. Of course, good universities anywhere, public or private, foreign or local, will grow the overall ecosystem if they differentiate and compete for higher quality,” said ViplavBaxi author of WhatIfEDU is best.

He added, “Of course, this competition will be broken down in segments. For the autonomous and premium private and public players, certainly the pressure will increase for local and international student acquisition as well as for high quality faculty acquisition and retention. New investments will be required in almost every area to keep up with the new kids on the block with large existing corpus. But that is here and now even with existing local-only scenario. We already have large universities that compete globally and with each other having world class infrastructure, faculty and pedagogy.”

“For the mid-market segment, it will be competition on brand largely, increasing pressure on local universities and colleges to ramp up their differentiators. Perhaps they will start merging into larger universities that can provide the investment and we will witness consolidation in the industry. I think this is where the action will largely be and where the arguments about creating a level playing field are most important,” said Baxi.

“The Indian universities are undergoing dilapidation each day particularly in the recent regime. There is a strict need to raise funds for such public universities and appoint quality teachers. But there is an otherwise situation. Amid such crisis being faced by Indian public universities, welcoming foreign universities in India would only help out the upper echelons of the society creating more class gap between the elite and others,” Dr.Maskoor Ahmad Usmani, former President AMU Students Union, said.

“In Indian public universities people from oppressed castes and marginalised communities were able to get admission and pursue higher education with least incurred cost. The welcoming of foreign campuses will further abandon the scope of affirmative action in education. This policy, hence, has only been made to serve the higher social strata of Indian society negating the aspirations of larger population,” Usmani argued.