The proposed Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operations, Maintenance of Quality and Prevention of Commercialisation) Bill is expected to be cleared by the Union Cabinet this week, after which it will be tabled in the winter session of Parliament.
“The Bill has been with the Cabinet for the last 10 days and might be cleared this week. After this, it will be tabled in Parliament and sent to the Standing Committee. After this, it will be discussed in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha,” said a ministry official.
If the Bill is passed, it will allow for 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in higher education. This, it is hoped, will help provide cheaper and better education, beside saving India billions of dollars in foreign exchange outgo.
The Bill proposes to bring foreign education providers under the administrative umbrella of the University Grants Commission (UGC), which means the admission process and fee structure of these institutes will be regulated by the UGC. Educationists, however, say this should be allowed only if the institutes offer the same quality of education here as they do in their home countries. It is assumed that foreign universities would come in only if they are allowed to levy international fees and pay international salaries.