E-Paper
Cabinet nod to set up single regulator for higher education
Union Cabinet approved the 'Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhikshan Bill' to create a single higher education regulator, replacing existing bodies
NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Friday approved a bill to create a single regulator for higher education, replacing the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), people familiar with the matter said.
The proposed legislation, earlier called the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) Bill, has now been renamed the ‘Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhikshan Bill,’ they said.
“The Bill is designed to simplify governance, eliminate overlapping regulations, and shift oversight from compliance-heavy procedures to a stronger emphasis on academic quality and learning outcomes in higher education institutions,” the people said.
Currently, UGC regulates non-technical higher education, the AICTE oversees technical education and the NCTE is the regulatory body for teachers’ education. The proposed single education regulator will act as a single higher education regulator, excluding medical and law colleges. It will focus on three core functions: regulation, accreditation, and setting professional standards. Funding, considered a separate vertical, will remain under the education ministry rather than the regulator.
The National Education Policy 2020 envisages HECI for “light but tight” regulation in higher education. It says that the regulatory system needs a complete overhaul to re-energise the higher education sector and enable it to thrive.
Earlier on November 28, Congress lawmaker Digvijaya Singh, who heads the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports, urged Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan to refer the HECI Bill to his panel for examination and discussion before it is taken up in Parliament during the winter session.
In February 2025, the Singh-led panel raised concerns over the proposed HECI as the principal regulator of higher education, warning of “excessive centralisation” and inadequate representation of states.
