New minister prioritises HE commission restructuring

The Economic Times 06 June 2014

Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani is turning her attention to transforming the University Grants Commission into a bona fide higher education regulator that is in tune with the sector’s changing landscape, writes Urmi A Goswami for The Economic Times.

Restructuring and refocusing the University Grants Commission, or UGC, from a grant-disbursing organisation into one that maintains standards and regulates the sector is among Irani's top 100-day priorities. Officials said the growth in the sector of private players, and possible entry of foreign education institutions, meant that the UGC needed to expand its regulatory functions.

The UGC was set up by an Act of Parliament in 1956, and is the statutory body for the coordination, determination and maintenance of standards of university education in the country. Over the years, despite the changes in the higher education sector, the Commission's emphasis has continued to be on its grant disbursal functions.
Full report on The Economic Times site

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