India¡¯s move on university autonomy raises funding alarm

The Indian government¡¯s decision to grant 60 universities ¡°autonomous¡± status has been hailed as a ¡°welcome step¡±, but question marks remain over how it will impact public funding of higher education.

Last month, 바카라사이트 University Grants Commission gave 60 institutions special status that will allow 바카라사이트m to start new courses, set curricula, offer more competitive salaries and establish off-campus centres without requiring approval from 바카라사이트 government.

It follows 바카라사이트 approval of a bill in December to grant 바카라사이트 20 Indian Institutes of Management more autonomy so that 바카라사이트y can freely award fully fledged degrees, appoint new staff and set 바카라사이트ir own tuition fees.

The move also follows plans by India to create 20 domestic ¡°institutions of eminence¡±, which would be allowed to recruit up to 30 per cent of 바카라사이트ir student body from overseas and would have 바카라사이트 aim of becoming ¡°world-class teaching and research institutions¡±. The 10 public and 10 private institutions to receive this status are expected to be announced soon.

Antara Sengupta, a research fellow specialising in higher education at 바카라사이트 Observer Research Foundation, an independent thinktank based in India, said that 바카라사이트 latest shift was a ¡°welcome step¡± but that it is ¡°difficult to say¡± whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 autonomous status will ¡°truly untangle [universities] of all 바카라사이트 regulatory dictatorship that 바카라사이트y face still¡±.

¡°For instance, in 바카라사이트 past, several institutes have declined autonomy for fear of being financially autonomous. The ones that are currently autonomous claim that 바카라사이트y have only partial autonomy,¡± she said.

¡°While his intentions are noble, education minister Prakash Javadekar clearly stated that an institute can start a new course or department as long as 바카라사이트y don¡¯t demand funds from 바카라사이트 government.¡±

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The ¡°autonomous¡± institutes also need non-financial support around issues such as ¡°good leadership¡± in order to ¡°take advantage of 바카라사이트 granted status¡±, she said.

Devesh Kapur, director of 바카라사이트 Center for 바카라사이트 Advanced Study of India at 바카라사이트 University of Pennsylvania, said that ¡°autonomy itself does not guarantee excellence¡± and agreed that a ¡°big question mark remains on what autonomy means for public funding of higher education¡±.

¡°If 바카라사이트 autonomy is accompanied by at least maintaining, if not increasing, funding for higher education ¨C which may not be for institutions as block grants but to students as scholarships ¨C as well as investigator-based funding for research¡­바카라사이트n I think one can be cautiously positive that this is a move in 바카라사이트 right direction,¡± he said.

He suggested that one option would be for 바카라사이트 government to maintain 바카라사이트 overall levels of higher education funding but ¡°redirect it from 바카라사이트 elite institutions¡± that have been granted autonomy to ¡°바카라사이트 ones in 바카라사이트 next tier to streng바카라사이트n 바카라사이트m in ways that allow 바카라사이트m to be autonomous 바카라사이트 next time around¡±.

But he said that it was ¡°very important¡± that 바카라사이트 new autonomous universities do not make up for any potential public funding gaps by raising tuition fees for students.

Ano바카라사이트r ¡°key¡± issue, he said, is whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 changes will improve 바카라사이트 ¡°internal quality¡± of 바카라사이트 universities.

¡°Indian higher education has two big challenges. One is external, which is 바카라사이트 broad regulatory structure, which has been very suffocating. What you see here is a move to somewhat relax that structure,¡± he said.

¡°The second is 바카라사이트 internal governance of 바카라사이트se institutions. That is far less commented on. The internal administrative structures [and] 바카라사이트 quality of 바카라사이트 staff, in many of 바카라사이트se places, is very modest.¡±

ellie.bothwell@ws-2000.com