The Universities
Research and Innovation Bill, 2012
Despite having one of the largest
higher education systems in the world with 600 Universities and 33000
colleges-publicly and privately funded, only a few Indian institutions of
learning figure in the list of top global institutions. The Bill was drafted
based on the following understanding that: a) public expenditure on higher
education is insufficient; and b) substantial part of the funding must flow
into the education through not-for-profit private participation. As per the
data given by UNESCO Institute for Statistics, India enjoys only 2% of the share of world
researchers as compared to other countries like
US (20.3%) and China (20.1%). The challenge, therefore, is to make India an attractive
destination for higher education, research and job opportunities.
The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on May 21, 2012. It is
significant to note that the Bill allows the Central Government to set up
Universities for Research and Innovation (“URI”)
through notifications. These universities shall be a) enabled to emerge as centres
for ecosystems to develop as hubs of education, research and innovation and b) promote
research and innovation in learning and design, development and delivery of
solutions and for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto. The Bill
aims to lay down an enabling legislative framework for establishment of URIs
both in the private and public sectors.
Standing Committee Recommendations
The Committee noted that the
traditional universities are focused on imparting undergraduate and
postgraduate education. They are not in a position to focus on research and innovation.
The Committee attributed the extant unfavourable legacy systems, governance
structures and the socio-cultural milieu of the existing institutions to the
lack of conducive environment for world-class research and innovation. In the
aforesaid context, the Committee observed that the proposed legislation for
setting up URIs is a long-awaited and
welcome step. The Committee was, however, critical of the extant framework
envisaged by the Bill.
The Committee noted that the proposed
universities will enjoy complete autonomy in the design of programmes. They
will be structured around Schools/Faculties, cutting across disciplines. The decision-making
on academic matters will be devolved to School/Faculty. The Committee observed that there
will be two different categories of universities – a set of institutions, which
are autonomous and free from any control or monitoring as envisaged for the
other traditional category of universities, having better service conditions
for their faculty as compared to the existing universities. Further, unlike the
traditional universities, the proposed URIs can be established through
notifications and therefore, fall outside the scrutiny of Parliament/Legislature.
Criticising the Department of Higher Education, the Committee noted that the Department did
not conduct wide-ranging consultations with all the stakeholders including
effective consultations with State Governments, academicians, scholars and
representatives from industry. It was also pointed out that the Department did
not consider the frameworks in other countries such as Australia, America,
Germany and China.
Strengthening the existing framework
The various stakeholders were of
the view that a few premier universities/institutions may be identified for higher
quality research and teaching rather than establishing another set of
universities. It was pointed out that universities such as JNU, Delhi
University, Hyderabad Univesity, IISC etc. have been functioning with research as
an integral component of teaching. It was admitted that absence of autonomy is the major
issue in most of the universities. The autonomy that they enjoy is limited to
academic autonomy and does not extend to administration and finance. It was
noted that the latter lacunae in the framework stifles research and innovation
in these institutions.
It was, accordingly, suggested
that administrative and financial autonomy with flexible rules will facilitate
and motivate research and innovation. It was also felt that interface between
universities and research labs like CSIR, DRDO, etc. and industries needs to
be strengthened. In short, all the major stakeholders were of the view that by
suitably modifying the present university system, objectives of the proposed legislation
can be achieved. There is little to be gained by creating a new structure.
Given the governance structures
in place, the Committee was of the view that it will be difficult to convert
any existing university into a URI. In the event of such traditional
universities being converted to URIs, it may lead to average students being
deprived of getting UG/PG education. The Committee noted that some of the
well-established Central Universities and Research Organisations are performing
well in the arena of research. The Committee recommended for
identifying and strengthening such universities so that they can evolve into
URIs. The Committee cited ‘Project 985’ launched by China in 1998 wherein
nine universities were converted into Research Universities. The progress of
the aforesaid universities in R & D was so immense that most of them are
now recognized all over the world for their research output.
Shortage of faculty
The Committee was of the view
that the problem of shortage of faculty persists and ails most of the
universities of the country. The mere setting up of new universities and
institutions will not serve any purpose in the absence of qualified and
experience teachers. According to the Committee, “the ultimate losers are the students and their future”. The
proposed universities, with better service conditions and higher pay scales,
will attract qualified and experienced teachers. The Department was thus
required to take concerted efforts in a balanced manner so that our existing
universities may not suffer at the cost of the proposed URIs. The Committee
recommended for accelerating the efforts of the Department towards reducing the
shortage of faculty.
(Will be continued...)
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