Kerala Assembly passes Bill to establish private universities

Concluding the debate on the Bill, Higher Education Minister Dr R Bindu said the Bill was envisaged to make Kerala a knowledge-based society. “The Bill has ensured government control in the private universities,’’ she said.

Congress-led Opposition supported the Bill, but raised concerns over the fate of the government and aided colleges in the state in the wake of establishing private universities.

“In many colleges, existing courses do not have students due to massive migration of students. The impact of the private universities on the existing system should be looked into. Existing educational agencies with proven track record should be given preference in establishing private universities,’’ said Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly V D Satheesan.

As per the norms in the Bill, a private university shall be a multi-disciplinary university and its location shall be within the state: provided that, the university may be permitted to open off-campus centres, off-shore campuses and study centres both outside the state and country, subject to the conditions stipulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the regulatory bodies concerned. The university shall be liable to promote and protect the rights of students. There shall be a student union and its constitution, powers and functions shall be as may be prescribed by the statutes.

The sponsoring body of the university can appoint a chancellor from the fields of agriculture, veterinary science, technology, medicine, social science, humanities, literature, art, culture, law, industry, commerce or public administration.