Context: India’s higher education ecosystem has expanded rapidly in scale but remains constrained by fragmented regulation and uneven quality. The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025 (Higher Education Regulation Bill, 2025) seeks to overhaul governance by replacing multiple legacy regulators with a unified, transparent, and outcome-oriented framework aligned with NEP 2020.
Why Regulation Reform Is Necessary
- System Explosion: India hosts over 1,000 universities and ~42,000 colleges (AISHE), yet approvals and monitoring remain slow and inconsistent due to regulatory overlap.
- Low Participation: India’s Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) ~28% remains far below the NEP ambition, signalling access and capacity constraints.
- Research Deficit: With ~0.7% of GDP spent on R&D (OECD), institutions often prioritise compliance over innovation and research outcomes.
- Global Quality Gap: Despite scale, only ~45 Indian institutions feature in QS World University Rankings 2025, reflecting limited global competitiveness.
- Employability Challenge: India produces ~1.5 crore graduates annually, yet only ~45–50% are readily employable, indicating a skill–education mismatch.
Key Provisions of the VBSA Bill, 2025
- Apex Body: Establishes the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) as the umbrella regulator.
- Three Councils: Distinct councils for Regulation, Accreditation, and Academic Standards.
- Regulatory Unification: Repeals UGC Act, 1956; AICTE Act, 1987; NCTE Act, 1993.
- Outcome-Based Accreditation: Shifts focus from inputs to learning outcomes and institutional performance.
- Foreign Universities: Provides a framework for entry and operation of foreign universities in India.
- Grant Separation: Removes grant-disbursal from the regulator; funding routed via the Ministry.
- Digital Transparency: Mandatory online self-disclosure of finances, courses, and governance.
- Coverage: Central & State Universities, Colleges, Institutions of National Importance, Eminence, Technical & Teacher Education Institutions.
- Exemptions: Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing, Law, Pharmacology, Veterinary Sciences.
Expected Impact
- Access Expansion: Single-window clearances can accelerate capacity creation, supporting a rise in GER from ~28% to 50% by 2035 (NEP target).
- Global Trust & Mobility: Unified standards and credible accreditation can boost international recognition; India currently hosts only ~0.5% of global international students.
- Accountability Loop: Structured student feedback and grievance redressal can improve teaching quality and institutional governance.