HRD ministry readies bill to replace AICTE, UGC

The Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry has readied a bill to set up a single regulator for higher education through the merger of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

The Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) bill, readied by the HRD ministry, will be a single regulator for higher education including technical education.

Law education will also be regulated by the proposed HECI.

The HRD ministry has brought the Law education under the ambit of the bill (HECI), the official sources told DH.

“The bill will be placed before the Union Cabinet for its approval next month,” sources added.

Another bill to set up a National Research Foundation has also been readied by the HRD ministry.

This bill is also expected to be placed before the Union Cabinet for its in October with the government keen on bringing this bill along with the one prepared for establishment of the HECI for Parliament's nod in the next Session which is expected to start in November.

While presenting Union Budget in Parliament in July, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had proposed for replacing UGC and the AICTE with a single higher education regulator, HECI. A draft legislation for setting up the HECI would be presented “in the year ahead,” she had said.

The minister had also proposed that a National Research Foundation (NRF) will be set up to fund, coordinate and promote research in the country.

“The NRF will assimilate the research grants being given by various Ministries independent of each other and ensure that the overall research eco-system in the country is strengthened with focus on identified thrust areas relevant to our national priorities and towards basic science without duplication of effort and expenditure,” she had said in her budget speech.