UGC paves means for IoEs to arrange campuses overseas

THE UNIVERSITY Grants Commission (UGC) has amended its rules, permitting Institutions of Eminence (IoEs) to arrange campuses overseas after receiving no objection certificates from the Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs. The transfer is in step with the federal government’s new National Education Policy, which says that prime performing universities ought to be inspired to arrange campuses overseas.
The amendments additionally allow the IOEs to start out new off campus centres, with a most of three in 5 years and never multiple in a tutorial 12 months.
There are 18 Institutions of Eminence, together with IIT-Delhi, IIT-Kharagpur, IIT-Madras and IIT-Bombay. “Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities shall be allowed to start new off-shore campuses with the prior approval of the Ministry after receiving No Objection Certificate from Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs,” say the amendments to the UGC (Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2017.
“The Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities shall ensure that the norms and standards of the off shore campus shall be the same as that maintained on the main campus for similar courses, and the off-shore campus shall also follow similar admission criteria, curriculum, examination system and evaluation system. All the information about off-shore campus shall be disclosed on the website of the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University.”
The functioning of the off shore campuses shall be reviewed by an Empowered Experts Committee “independently and/or along with the IOE”.

“After review of the off shore campus, if the Empowered Experts Committee is not satisfied with the performance of the off shore campus, it may recommend discontinuation of the off shore campus to the Central Government. ln such cases, the interest of the students enrolled at the off-shore campus shall be adequately protected by the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University,” the amendments state.
The IOEs have additionally been permitted to start out an off campus centre on an interim campus “subject to the condition that the permanent campus shall be ready within a reasonable time period of not exceeding five years.”