Gokhale Institute to recommend funding methods for state universities

The initiative will not only examine how higher education institutions in Maharashtra currently receive funding and identify any disparity, but also study how higher education institutions receive philanthropic support globally to provide alternative sustainable funding models.

Dr Ajit Ranade, vice chancellor of the institute, elaborated on the task at hand and said, “Public universities play a vital role in higher education in ensuring that it is accessible and affordable for all. Thus, to determine long-term sustainable and inclusive growth of higher education, it is important to enhance the role of funding. Not all of it can come from the government making it unavoidable to look at other sources.”

“The idea is to increase the scale of financial resources with an ultimate goal of enhancing the level of excellence and maintaining the quality of education in public universities,” he added.

A senior official from the department of higher and technical education of Maharashtra said, “Public universities in the state are highly dependent on grants coming from the government. There are various alternative modes of funding apart from government grants. This is through industry-academia collaboration, research as well as consultancy projects, developing student loan systems and alumni connections. It is time to review global trends to enhance funding in state universities towards making them financially independent.”

The institute is expected to submit its report within three months.