Ends without means: On UGC reforms and higher education 

The Draft UGC (Minimum Standards of Instruction for the Grant of Undergraduate Degree and Postgraduate Degree) Regulations, 2024 propose significant changes to India’s higher education landscape. These include bi-annual admissions to undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) courses, enabling students from any stream to pursue any discipline in UG and PG if they pass a relevant national qualifying examination, and allowing for the extension or acceleration of courses. Students can pursue multiple degrees simultaneously. Higher educational institutions will have the autonomy to determine student attendance requirements. According to the UGC Chairman, M. Jagadesh Kumar, these changes will remove rigidity, ensuring that global standards are met. While the intent is laudable, one provision further centralises examinations as a qualifying criterion, which may limit flexibility. The draft rules align with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which emphasises hybrid learning models and skill-based education. The draft rules also support the implementation of the National Credit Framework, providing students greater academic flexibility.

However, while the goals of these reforms are clear, the question is whether there are resources to implement such sweeping changes. Hurdles exist as systemic issues such as insufficient faculty strength, underfunded institutions, and a lack of adequately trained or motivated teachers. Moreover, the regulatory framework, such as on class strength requirements, governing affiliated colleges where a majority of the students study, is ill-equipped to support these new rules that may be implemented more easily in autonomous institutions. Since education is on the concurrent list, State governments often show initial compliance with new regulations only to backtrack. The inertia within academic bodies and administrative procedures further complicates the effective adoption of changes such as the ‘academic bank of credits’. This initiative allows students to register at one institution, take courses from another, and complete apprenticeships in a company, with the degree being awarded by the first institution. While such flexibility is groundbreaking, it faces considerable resistance from traditional academic structures. Moreover, the success of these reforms hinges on a substantial increase in investment in education. Unfortunately, this year’s Budget allocates 15% less funding to higher education compared to the previous year’s revised estimates. While the draft UGC rules offer a promising vision, their success will depend on addressing existing systemic challenges and ensuring that there are adequate resources in place.