'Foreign Universities Bill will give them autonomy equal to Indian institutions' - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Union Minister for Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal on Tuesday said that with the passage of the proposed Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operation) Bill, 2010 in the Parliament, foreign universities will get as much autonomy as private institutions of India get in the country. He also noted that merger of Indian and foreign academics, beneficial to India since it is essential for a society to innovate and survive in a global competitive environment. Kapil Sibal made these observations while addressing the inaugural session at a conference 'Tomorrow's North: Green and Educated North' hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Tuesday. "Foreign universities will get as much autonomy as Universities in India get. No more, no less. And we are intending to liberalise the process. I hope all the stakeholders in society make sure that the Bill (presently before the parliament) is passed," said Kapil Sibal. The government's intention in bringing in the legislation was to withdraw from the field of education and give more professional autonomy to academic institutions in the higher education sector, he added. Highlighting the importance of the implementation of the Right to Education Act, he said it is a historic moment for India's education sector. "In next three years all the neighbourhood schools should have requisite infrastructure, which is in consistent with the Act. All the teachers, men and women who are teaching in schools, if they don't have requisite qualification must in next five years get those qualifications so that they can continue," added Sibal. The Union Cabinet had already cleared the Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operation) Bill, 2010, for introduction in Parliament. It seeks to allow foreign education providers to set up campuses in the country and offer degrees. This Bill is equally important for rural as well as urban student and a divide is fictitious, Kapil Sibal noted. The Foreign University Bill will go a long way in promotion of knowledge, he said. The government aims to lift the current gross enrolment ratio to 30 percent over the next decade. This conference organised by the CII-Northern Region will focus on developing educational standards to meet emerging demands in the job market.