HRD has decided on a new mechanism which will enable faster and transparent clearance
to new distance education institutes and courses.
To give a fillip to distance education in India, the HRD
has decided on a new mechanism which will enable faster and transparent clearance
to new distance education institutes and courses. The ministry last week decided
that all distance education proposals will be discussed once every month by a joint
committee of the University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council for Technical
Education (AICTE) and Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), the three
higher education regulatory bodies.
Proposals regarding distance education are cleared by Distance Education Council
(DEC) under IGNOU but the UGC and AICTE have been opposing several decisions citing
regulatory flaws. No distance education institute or course is allowed without a
mandatory no-objection certificate from UGC and AICTE but still approvals have been
given.
“The distance education council used to seek post facto clearance which we had opposed,”
said UGC chairperson Ved Prakash. It meant a customary three to four months to decide
on a specific proposal resulting in huge delays.
To end the continuous wrangling between different higher education regulatory bodies
and speed up the approval process, HRD minister Kapil Sibal held discussions with
chiefs of these regulatory bodies last week and decided to constitute a joint committee
to be convened by a ministry official.
“The onus of fostering distance education will now be ministry’s responsibility,”
a HRD ministry official said. But, the final decision would still remain with the
regulatory bodies. “We have provided a mechanism for faster disposal of disputes,”
the official explained.
The decision was fall-out of the concern raised by educationists regarding anticipated
failure of existing universities and colleges to meet the increase in demand for
higher education in the coming years. There are just 70 approved institutions to
provide distance education as against the requirement of over 200. “Distance education
is a viable alternative but we have to provide enough quality institutions to attract
students,” the official said.
According to Ved Prakash, the new committee will consider all proposals
and the decision will be taken there and then. Looking into quality of the courses
provided is another aspect the committee will look into. The IGNOU will act as secretariat
of the committee.
Courtesy: Hindustan Times
