UGC (Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be
Universities) Regulations, 2017
UGC (Institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2017[1]
[29th
August, 2017]
To create a distinct
category of Deemed to be Universities, called Institutions of Eminence Deemed
to be Universities, which would be regulated differently from other Deemed to
be Universities so as to evolve into Institutions of world class in a reasonable
time period, the University Grants Commission, in exercise of powers conferred
under Clauses [f] & [g] of Sub-Section [1] of Section 26 of the University
Grants Commission Act, 1956, hereby, makes the following Regulations, namely:—
Regulation - 1. SHORT TITLE, APPLICATION AND COMMENCEMENT
(1) These Regulations may be
called the UGC (Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities)
Regulations, 2017.
(2) These Regulations shall
apply to every existing or proposed Institution, not owned or controlled by Government,
seeking declaration or having been declared as an Institutions of Eminence
Deemed to be University under these Regulations.
(3) These Regulations shall
also apply to Government owned and controlled Deemed to be Universities which
have been declared Institutions of Eminence under UGC (Declaration of
Government Educational Institutions as Institutions of Eminence) Guidelines,
2017, to the extent mentioned in these Regulations.
(4) The Deemed to be
Universities declared as “Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities”
under these Regulations or under UGC (Declaration of Government Educational
Institutions as Institutions of Eminence) Guidelines, 2017 shall be regulated
under these Regulations and Guidelines only and the UGC (Institutions Deemed to
be Universities) Regulations, 2016 shall not apply to such Institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities.
(5) These Regulations shall
come into force with effect from the date of their notification in the Official
Gazette.
Regulation - 2. DEFINITIONS.
In these Regulations,
unless the context otherwise requires:
(1) “Act” means the University
Grants Commission Act, 1956 [Act 3 of 1956].
(2) “Campus” means Campus of
the Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University, wherein its major
facilities including academic facilities, faculty, staff, and students are
located in India.
(3) “Commission” means the
University Grants Commission (UGC) constituted under the Act or any other body
empowered to regulate an institution deemed to be university under any law for
the time being in force.
(4) “Constituent Institution”
means an Institution operating under the administrative, academic and financial
control of the Sponsoring Organization.
(5) “Empowered Experts
Committee” means a Committee constituted by the Commission to exercise the
powers conferred by Regulations 7 of these Regulations.
(6) “Government” means the
Central Government, unless the context so specifies.
(7) “Guidelines” means UGC
(Declaration of Government Educational Institutions as Institutions of
Eminence) Guidelines, 2017.
(8) “Institution” means an
Institution for higher education engaged in teaching and research of high
academic standards at the undergraduate, post-graduate or higher levels.
(9) “Institution Deemed to be
University” means an Institution for higher education so declared, on the
recommendation of the Commission, by the Central Government under Section 3 of
the Act.
(10) “Ministry” means Ministry
of Human Resource Development.
(11) “Notification” means a
notification issued by the Central Government in the Official Gazette declaring
an Institution for higher education, as an Institutions of Eminence Deemed to
be University, under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956.
(12) “Off-Campus Centre” means a
centre of the Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University beyond its
Campus and located elsewhere in the country.
(13) “Off-Shore Campus” means a
campus of the Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University beyond its
Campus and located outside India.
(14) “Processing Fee” means the
charges that have to be paid by the applicant Institution to the Commission
along with the application for processing such application. The Processing Fee
shall be Rupees one crore for Institutions which apply for the status of
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University. The Commission may revise it
from time to time.
(15) “Professional Regulatory
Council” means a body constituted under any law for the time being in force for
determining or maintaining standards of quality in the relevant areas of higher
education pertaining to professional education and bodies such as Medical
Council of India (MCI), Dental Council of India (DCI), National Council for
Teacher Education (NCTE) and Bar Council of India (BCI), etc.
(16) “Sponsoring Organization”
means a body being a charitable or a not-for-profit Society or a public Trust
or a Company incorporated under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013 making an
application to upgrade its existing Institution Deemed to be University into an
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University or to establish a new
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University.
(17) “Institutions of Eminence
Deemed to be University” means an Institution declared as such under these
Regulations and which shall be distinct from “Deemed to be Universities”
declared under UGC (Institutions Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2016.
Regulation - 3. OBJECTIVES OF INSTITUTIONS OF EMINENCE DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITIES.
The objectives of Institutions
of Eminence Deemed to be Universities shall be:
(1) to provide for higher
education leading to excellence and innovations in such branches of knowledge
as may be deemed fit at post-graduate, graduate and research degree levels and
award degrees, diplomas and other academic distinctions;
(2) to engage in areas of
specialization to make distinctive contributions to the objectives of the
university education system wherein the academic engagement is clearly
distinguishable from programmes of an ordinary nature and is tuned to
developing the capacity of the students and the researchers to compete in the
global tertiary education marketplace through the acquisition and creation of
advanced knowledge in those areas;
(3) to provide for high quality
teaching and research and for the advancement of knowledge and its
dissemination through various research programmes undertaken in-house by
substantial number of full time faculty and research scholars in diverse
disciplines;
(4) to pay special attention to
teaching and research in unique and emerging areas of knowledge, including
interdisciplinary areas, which are regarded as important for strategic needs of
the country but are not being pursued by conventional or existing institutions
so far, and award degrees, diplomas and other academic distinctions.
(5) to aim to be rated
internationally for its teaching and research as a top hundred Institution in
the world over time.
Regulation - 4. CHARACTERISTICS OF INSTITUTIONS OF EMINENCE DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITIES
(1) Notable features present in
existing international institutions of global repute, which figure at the top
in all reputed ranking frameworks, include the following:
(i)
Highly
qualified faculty, with freedom to hire from across the world;
(ii)
Existence
of academic, administrative and financial autonomy;
(iii)
Excellence
in research;
(iv)
High
Quality of teaching;
(v)
High
levels of funding;
(vi)
Adequate
financial assistance to meritorious students to support a need-blind admissions
process;
(vii)
Selection
of students through a transparent system so as to ensure intake of meritorious
students;
(viii)
A
significant proportion of international students;
(ix)
Autonomous
governance structures;
(x)
Well-equipped
facilities for teaching, research, administration, and student life;
(xi)
Tangible
and intangible contribution to the society; and
(xii)
Ability
to leverage alumni and alternative funding sources, and the autonomy to utilize
these resources
(2) While an Institution
declared as an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University is free to
choose its path to become an institution of global repute, an indicative list
of parameters, the institute should satisfy within a reasonable time from the
date of notification declaring it as an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be
University are as follows:
(1) It should preferably be
multi-disciplinary or inter-disciplinary and have both teaching and research
focus of an exceptionally high quality.
(2) It should offer
inter-disciplinary courses, including in areas of emerging technology and
interest as well as those of relevance to the development concerns of countries
like India and also award degrees, diplomas and other academic distinctions in
such interdisciplinary areas.
(3) It should have a good
proportion of foreign or foreign qualified faculty. Foreign/foreign qualified
faculty means:
(a) Any faculty of non Indian
citizenship. Or
(b) Any Indian citizen who has
spent considerable time in academics in a foreign country, with his academic
qualification/experience from top 500 Institutions figuring in a reputed world
ranking.
(4) There should be a
reasonably good mix of Indian and foreign students.
(5) There should be a
transparent merit based selection in admissions, so that the focus remains on
getting meritorious students.
(6) The admission process
should be need-blind — so that once a student gets admission purely on merit,
such a meritorious student should not be turned away for lack of financial
ability.
(7) The faculty student ratio
should be not be less than 1:20 at the time of notification issued declaring an
Institution as an Institution of Eminence and should increase over time so as
not to be less than 1:10 after five years of this date. The faculty for this
purpose includes the regular faculty, adjunct faculty, and long term faculty
(for at least three years). Part time faculty shall not be counted for the
purpose.
(8) There should be laboratory
facilities to undertake cutting-edge scientific research for those Institutions
of Eminence Deemed to be Universities doing scientific research. In case of
humanities, social science and other interdisciplinary areas, the faculty
should be engaged in research and field work in frontier areas using the latest
methodologies.
(9) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should strive to achieve social impact by engaging in
applied research and innovation in issues of concern to developing societies.
(10) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should develop teaching and research collaborations
with a reasonable number of global universities figuring in the most reputed
global rankings.
(11) (i) The Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University should have:
(a) For existing private
Institution, an initial corpus fund of Rupees 60 crore which would be increased
at an annual uniform rate to Rupees 150 crore in ten years time and guaranteed
pipeline of Rupees 500 crore, along with a credible plan for additional Rupees
500 crore.
(b) For yet to be established
institutions, an initial corpus fund of Rs 60 crore which would be increased at
an annual uniform annual rate to Rs 150 crore in ten years time and guaranteed
pipeline of Rs 500 crore, along with a credible plan for additional Rs 1000
crore.
(ii) The source of funds
should be known and should be available for scrutiny by competent authorities.
(12) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should be known for promoting a culture where faculty
are encouraged to publish regularly in peer-reviewed journals and engage
academically with the issues of concern to the society. It should have a record
of research publications at the mean rate of at least one per faculty member
each year in reputed peer-reviewed international journals based on publication
made by top 100 global Universities in these journals. For this purpose:
(a) Any paper published in
international publications which are included in SCOPUS, Web Science or similar
international agencies can be counted.
(b) Instead of every faculty
required to be satisfying the publication criteria, it would be enough if the
parameters is satisfied as an average across the institution.
(13) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should have a world-class library with subscriptions to
reputed journals in the areas of courses it is offering.
(14) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should have student amenities comparable with that of
globally reputed institutions.
(15) The Institution should be
accredited by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) or an
alternative version of NAAC which conforms to UGC (Institutions of Eminence
Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2017 or its amendments and also be
assessed by atleast one reputed international accreditation agency, one whose
ratings are a credible and widely accepted global benchmark. The Institution
may however appeal on accreditation of NAAC or alternative version of NAAC to
the Empowered Experts Committee, whose decision shall be final.
(16) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should have reasonably large owned/long term leased (at
least thirty years) campus with adequate space for expansion.
(17) The governance structure of
the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University should be distinct from the
governance structure of the Sponsoring Organization.
(18) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University should achieve a student enrolment of at least ten
thousand over a period of fifteen years. However, the institutions may project
a lower figure as its enrolment target with justification on how that enrolment
figure would enable it to become a world class university.
(19) It should come in top five
hundred of any of the world renowned ranking frameworks (such as the Times
Higher Education World University Rankings or QS or Shanghai's Jiao Tong
University) in the first ten years of setting up on being declared as
Institution of Eminence, and having achieved top five hundred rank, should
consistently improve its ranking to come in the top one hundred eventually over
time.
(3) The Institution giving an
application to be declared as an Institution of Eminence, should in its
proposal mention the detailed and tangible action plan, milestones, and
timelines by which it seeks to achieve each of the parameters laid down in
Regulation 4.2, mentioning milestones to be achieved in first five years and
over 15 years.
Regulation - 5. PROVISION REGARDING DECLARATION OF AN EXISTING GOVERNMENT OWNED AND CONTROLLED DEEMED UNIVERSITY AS AN INSTITUTION OF EMINENCE DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY
(1) The UGC (Declaration of
Government Educational Institutions as Institutions of Eminence) Guidelines
2017 would apply to existing Government owned and controlled Deemed to be University
which seeks to become Institution of Eminence.
(2) Such an Institution will
have to apply to MHRD as per the provisions given in the Guidelines and the
selection procedure would be as per the provisions given in the Guidelines.
(3) If such Deemed to be University
is declared as an Institution of Eminence under the Guidelines, then it would
be eligible to be called “Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University”.
(4) The funding, additional
incentives, monitoring, accreditation ranking and penalty, of such Government
owned and controlled Institutions shall be as provided for in the Guidelines.
(5) Provisions in these
Regulations regarding distance education, unitary status and Reservation would
also apply to such Government owned and controlled Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University.
Regulation - 6. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR DECLARATION OF A PRIVATELY OWNED AND CONTROLLED INSTITUTIONS TO BE CONFERRED THE STATUS OF INSTITUTION OF EMINENCE DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY
(1) The proposed Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University should satisfy the following provisions:
(i) It should be an Institution
which has been established as a private Deemed to be University satisfying all
the provisions of the UGC (Institutions Deemed to be Universities) Regulations,
2016 or established under a law made by a Legislative Assembly of any State
satisfying all conditions laid down under UGC (Establishment of and Maintenance
of Standards in Private Universities) Regulations, 2003 as amended; or it
should make a completely new proposal to establish an Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University.
(ii) The Sponsoring Organization
shall be not-for-profit society or a public trust or a company constituted
under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013.
(iii) The Sponsoring Organization
for greenfield institutions should have members whose total net worth is at
least Rupees five thousand crore collectively. For existing institutions, the
total networth of all members of Sponsoring Organisation should be Rupees three
thousand crore collectively.
(iv) The Sponsoring Organization
should have atleast some members whose credentials, as borne out by their
record and to the satisfaction of the Empowered Experts Committee, indicate
that they are committed to the objectives laid out in Regulation 4.
(v) The Sponsoring Organisation
should have identified the first Chancellor and first Vice-Chancellor and the
core team who will implement the work of setting up the Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University. All of them should have very high qualifications and wide
experience.
(vi) The institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities should have corpus fund and other financial
resources as specified in Regulation 4.2.11.
(vii) A detailed fifteen year
strategic vision plan and a five year rolling implementation plan, with clear
annual milestones and action plans on how the new Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University is to be set up, with identifiable outputs and outcomes
and how it plans to meet the criteria for attaining the status of an
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University, as laid down in Regulation 4.
(viii) The governance structure of
the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University should be distinct from the
governance structure of the Sponsoring Organization. The apex Governing Body of
the University should consist of members whose credentials indicate that they
can contribute to achievement of the objectives laid out in Regulation 4, and
not be mere representatives of some section or entity. The Sponsoring
Organisation and the apex Governing Body of the University should be separate
body corporate, though there could be a few members from Sponsoring
Organisation in the apex Governing Body to leverage the full commitment of
sponsors to deliver the desired outcomes in a very short-time frame. The governance
structure should demonstrate the sponsor's commitment to an arms-length
relationship between the two entities.
(ix) It should have sufficient
evidence to show that it has experience in translating plans into real
achievements in any field (not necessarily in the field of higher education,
but preferably in it) as per its plans.
(x) In case of institutions
established under a law passed by a Legislative Assembly of a State, they
should submit an undertaking from the respective State Government that, if the
University is selected as an Institution of Eminence, then:
(i)
If
there is an exit clause in the existing legislation governing the institution,
then the State Government would withdraw its status as an institution under the
said legislation and allow it to become an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be
University or
(ii)
If
no such exit clause is there in the existing legislation governing the
institution, then State Government would introduce an appropriate legislation
in the State Legislature withdrawing its status as an institution under the
said legislation.
(xi) In case of existing
institutions, appropriate consideration will be given at the time of selection
to their record of adherence to the principles mentioned in Regulation 4.
Regulation - 7. EMPOWERED EXPERTS COMMITTEE
(1)
Appointment
There shall be an Empowered
Experts Committee (EEC) consisting of three to five eminent persons appointed
for a period of three years. The member/s shall be eligible to be reappointed
for one or more terms of three years each. They will be reputed and credible
individuals who have contributed to education, other public issues, economic
growth and social development for a minimum period of ten years. They should
have had an exceptional and untarnished record in their respective fields of
excellence, and an incontrovertible and demonstrated commitment to public
causes. The members of the Committee would be appointed by the Commission as
advised by the Central Government, which would send the names to the Commission
after taking the approval of the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC). A
panel of names shall be sent to ACC on the recommendation of Search Committee
consisting of Cabinet Secretary as Chairperson and Secretary (Higher Education)
and Chairperson (UGC) as members. ACC may either approve the names recommended
by the search committee or may substitute any or all the names recommended.
(2)
Powers and functions of the EEC
The power and functions of
the EEC shall include:
(i) Scrutinizing and appraising
the proposals submitted by existing Private Institutions desirous of being
declared as an Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be University and from
Sponsoring Organizations desirous of setting up new Institutions of Eminence
Deemed to be Universities.
(ii) Making recommendations to
the Commission for the purposes of selection of Institutions of Eminence Deemed
to be Universities, in accordance with Regulation 8.4.
(iii) Monitoring and reviewing of
implementation plans of Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities, in
accordance with Regulation 13.
(iv) Conducting review of
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities in order to ensure quality,
as provided for in Regulation 11.6.2
(v) Evolving such other
monitoring and review systems with the objective of guiding and supervising the
growth of Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities.
(vi) Deciding on appeals against
the decision of a domestic accreditation body on relevant accreditation of the
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities.
(vii) Deciding on changes in
transfer of sponsorship from any or all of the original sponsors of
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities.
(viii) Making recommendations to
the Commission with respect to the liquidation of the Corpus Fund of an
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University.
(ix) Calling for the accounts of
the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be Universities to verify compliance with
the corpus and other additional guaranteed and committed financing
requirements.
(x) Assessing deviations from
the goals of Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities and making
recommendations to the Commission regarding Penalties for the same.
(xi) Examining proposals on
issues not covered in the regulations and making recommendations to the
competent authorities.
Regulation - 8. PROCEDURE FOR DECLARATION AS AN INSTITUTION OF EMINENCE DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY
(1) Call for application
The Commission shall call
for applications, to be submitted to the Ministry of Human Resource
Development, both from existing Private Institutions desirous of being declared
as an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University and also from Sponsoring
Organisations desirous of setting up new Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be
Universities. The advertisement shall be issued both in print media and also
shall be put on the website of Commission and the Ministry of Human Resource
Development. A minimum time of ninety days should be provided for submitting
applications from the date of the advertisement.
(2) Application
(1) An application in specified
format may be made by the Chancellor of an existing Private Institution Deemed
to be University/existing Private University and by Sponsoring Body for an
institution yet to established to the Ministry of Human Resource Development,
along with a processing fee of Rupees one crore by way of Demand Draft drawn in
favour of The Secretary, University Grants Commission. The processing fee is
refundable to the extent of Rupees seventy five lakh to the applicant who are
not selected as Institutions of Eminence.
(2) Every application should
have two parts, a fifteen year strategic vision plan as well as a five year
implementation plan. The former would be the long-term strategic plan to meet
the objectives and characteristics of an Institution of Eminence and shall also
contain the quantified milestones and timelines for the institution to achieve
world-class repute as laid down in Regulations 3 and 4. The implementation plan
should contain detailed and tangible annual action plans to achieve the
objectives laid out in the strategic plan.
(3) Accompanying documents
Each application should be
accompanied by the following (as applicable as per the Category of the
Institution under Regulation 1.2):
(a) Details of
members/directors of the Sponsoring Organization.
(b) The guiding documents of
Sponsoring Organisation (such as Memorandum of Association or Trust Deed) which
should clearly lay down that research & education is one of the main
objectives.
(c) Supporting documents to
satisfy the eligibility condition on net worth given in Regulation 6.1(iii).
(d) Supporting documents to
satisfy the eligibility conditions on corpus and financial resources given in
the Regulation 6.1(vi).
(e) There should be an
in-principle commitment from the concerned persons to make available adequate
land for the development of the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be
University.
(f) Governance structure,
including apex Board, and the nature of relationship between the proposed
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University and the Sponsoring Organization.
(g) Name and details of the
Chancellor, first Vice Chancellor and the core team who will implement the work
of setting up of the proposed Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University.
(h) Details of a five year
implementation plan to establish the foundations of an Institution of global
repute and consisting of the following:
(i)
An
academic plan showing the courses proposed and their schedule of offering.
(ii)
A
faculty recruitment policy and plan meet the academic plan requirements. The
faculty plan should strive to maintain the faculty-student ratio of atleast
1:10. A proportion of the faculty should have either studied or worked in the
top-tier global Universities. This should also contain information about any
proposal to draw faculty resources from industry, government, non-profit
organisations etc.
(iii)
A
student admissions policy and plan to select Indian and foreign students and
expand the enrolment to the desired level as mentioned in Regulation 4.2.18.
The admissions policy should also contain the details of the scholarships that
will be provided to ensure that meritorious selected students without adequate
financial capability are not turned away.
(iv)
A
research plan indicating the research laboratories and other facilities
proposed to be established. In case of humanities, social science and other
interdisciplinary faculties, the research plan should indicate the broad areas
and nature of field work and research sought to be done.
(v)
A
networking plan outlining the teaching and research collaborations and
partnerships with private sector and foreign universities, research
institutions, think-tanks, labs etc. that are proposed to be put in place.
(vi)
An
infrastructure development plan that would meet the proposed academic and
admissions plans as well as all student and other amenities.
(vii)
A
financing plan, with details of the sources and estimated amounts, to meet the
aforementioned plans as well as modalities for their transfer to the proposed
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University.
(viii)
An
administrative plan for getting accreditation from national and international
agencies, as well as marketing and promotion.
(ix)
A
governance plan that indicates the proposed Institution of Eminence Deemed to
be University's institutional structure and how it overlaps with ownership,
decision-making processes and social engagement. This governance plan should be
committed to the highest global standards of transparency, accountability, and
efficiency.
(x)
All
these plans should signal the clear commitment of the promoters to achieve the
objectives and characteristics laid down in Regulation 3 & 4 and should
have actionable items with clear and quantified milestones and timelines.
(xi)
The
objective should be that the proposed Institution of Eminence Deemed to be
University should stabilize and establish credibility to be on a path to become
a university of global repute in the first fifteen years.
(i) The five year
implementation plan would be recast for each five year cycle, so as to achieve
the objectives outlined in the fifteen year strategic plan.
(j) A bank guarantee for Rupees
ten crore, which would be forfeited if the proposed Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University is not set up within the given time.
(k) A plan to implement the
accounting standards of educational institutions as well as double independent
tracking of Accounts, expenditure and reinvestment.
(l) In case of State Private
University, an undertaking from the State Government specified in Regulation
6.1(x).
(m) Any other information or
document which the advertisement/application format specifies.
(4) Selection of Institutions
of Eminence Deemed to be Universities
After the receipt of
application, a two stage approval process would be followed - issue of Letter
of Intent (LOI) initially and finally issue of order for declaration as an
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University. The applications shall be
processed in the following manner:
(a) The Ministry of Human
Resource Development will forward all applications received by the last date to
the Commission which would entrust it to the Empowered Expert Committee.
(b) Simultaneously, the
Commission shall also address the State Government, where the Institute is
proposed to be located in case of a new Institution yet to be established,
asking for its no objection, and if the State Government objection is not
received in three weeks time, it shall be presumed that it has no objection.
(c) The Empowered Expert Committee
shall conduct its appraisal based on the documents submitted by the applicant
as well as any other measure of demonstrated commitment to the cause of
developing an Institution of Eminence. This appraisal will be a table one,
involving scrutiny of papers submitted, along with multiple interactions with
the representatives of the Sponsoring Organizations, and may also involve any
field visit. The Empowered Experts Committee shall engage with the Institutions
to study their proposals, hear presentations from them and after a thorough
scrutiny, rank the Institutions for their suitability for inclusion in this
scheme, based on which the Empowered Experts Committee would make its
recommendations. The EEC will also give names of additional institutions apart from
the ten institutions in order of merit as reserved institutions.
(d) The recommendations of the
Empowered Expert Committee shall be submitted to the Commission, which shall
forward it to Ministry of Human Resource Development within fifteen days of
receipts of the recommendations.
(e) The Ministry of HRD will
issue a Letter of Intent (LOI), or otherwise, within two weeks of receipt of
the recommendations under Regulation 8.4(d).
(f) The EEC will conduct yearly
review of the progress made by the Institutions to whom LoI has been issued, to
ascertain whether the progress made by the institute is commensurate with time
considering that Institute has to be ready for commencing the academic
operations within the time stipulated in LOI. In case EEC is satisfied that the
progress of any institute is not commensurate, it will ask the Institution to
rectify the situation within a time frame prescribed by EEC and if still not
rectified by the end of the time period given, the EEC may recommend withdrawal
of LOI of that institute. The Government will examine the recommendation and
may pass orders cancelling LOI and may also issue LOI to the next Institute in
the reserve list.
(g) The Sponsoring Organization
in case of new Institution or the University, in case of existing Institution,
will set up or upgrade, as the case may be, the Institution and indicate its
readiness for commencing academic operations, as per the plan within three
years of issue of Letter of Intent. For extension of this period for a maximum
six months, it will have to apply to the Ministry of Human Resource Development
specifically for the same giving the reasons for delay.
(h) Once the indication for
readiness for commencing academic operations is received in the Ministry of
Human Resource Development, the Ministry of Human Resource Development shall
send it to Commission which shall ask the Empowered Experts Committee to do an
assessment of readiness in thirty days' time and send the report to the
Commission. The report of Empowered Experts Committee shall be placed before
the Commission, which shall forward it to the Ministry of Human Resource
Development, within fifteen days.
(i) The Institution can also
get the assessment done, in parallel, if it wishes too, through a third party
international agency which has accredited at least ten Institutions from the
top hundred Institutions in a reputed global ranking index. In case of difference
between Empowered Experts Committee assessment and the independent assessment,
the Empowered Experts Committee shall re-examine the proposal and its
conclusions will be final.
(j) Based on the
recommendations of the Empowered Experts Committee, as approved by the
Commission, the Ministry of Human Resource Development, shall issue orders on
selection of Institutions under this scheme.
(k) The LOI issued to the
Sponsoring Organisation is non transferable. The composition of Sponsoring
Organisation cannot be changed. In exceptional circumstances like death and
bankruptcy, the EEC, for the reasons to be recorded in writing, may allow, the
composition of the sponsoring Organisation to be changed, subject to the
condition that the new Member/Members satisfy to the EEC, the condition given
in Regulation 6.1(iv).
(5) SIGNING OF Memorandum of
Understanding
The strategic and
implementation plans for each Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University
would be converted into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that shall guide
and govern the development of the Institution during that period. It shall be
revised every five years to incorporate the new implementation plan. In case of
an existing Private University under a law passed by the Legislative Assembly
of a State, such a Memorandum of Understanding shall be signed only after it
ceases to be a Private University.
(6) NOTIFICATION
After signing of the
Memorandum of Understanding, the Government shall issue a notification within
thirty days declaring the Institution as an Institution of Eminence Deemed to
be University. If it is an existing Deemed to be University, such a
notification shall automatically imply that the Institution is no longer a
Deemed to be University under UGC (Institutions Deemed to be Universities) Regulations,
2016, but an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University under this
Regulation.
Regulation - 9. GOVERNANCE SYSTEM
(1) The Governance structure of
the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University should be distinct from the
governance structure of the Sponsoring Organization. The apex governing body of
the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University should consist of
members/directors whose credentials indicate that they can contribute to
achievement of the objectives laid out in Regulation 4, and not be mere
representatives of some entity. The Sponsoring Organisation and the apex
Governing Body of the University should be separate body corporate, though
there could be a few members from Sponsoring Organisation in the apex Governing
Body to leverage the full commitment of sponsors to deliver the desired
outcomes in a very short-time frame. The governance structure should ensure an
arms-length relationship between the two entities.
Regulation - 10. FUNDING
There shall be no funding
by the Central Government either to existing Private Institutions which have
been declared as Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities or to the
newly established private Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities
under this scheme. However, this would not exclude them for accessing
Government funds allocated for specific studies/projects which they may
execute.
Regulation - 11. ADDITIONAL INCENTIVES
The Institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities selected in the aforesaid manner shall have
additional incentives. These incentives would be available to all Institutions
of Eminence Deemed to be Universities under these Regulations. As such, consistent
with the national policy objective of creating an enabling regulatory
architecture for these Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities, the
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities shall, upon declaration as
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities, be governed by the
provisions of this Regulation. In particular, such Institutions of Eminence
Deemed to be Universities shall be exempt from all UGC Regulations and other
guidelines, notifications and orders of the Commission on matters pertaining to
the subject areas laid down in Regulation 11.1 to 11.6 of these Regulations.
(1)
Admission and Fees Structure:
(1) While domestic students
shall have to be selected through a transparent merit based system (which can
be designed by the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University itself), the
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University would be free to admit foreign
students on merit as per its internal policies, subject to a maximum of additional
thirty percent of the strength of admitted domestic students.
(2) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University would be free to fix fees, for both domestic and
foreign students as per its internal policies, and would be exempted from any
fee regulations which may be there in force. However, fee should be fixed in a
transparent and upfront manner without any hidden charges to be taken from
students. In addition, charging of capitation fee is prohibited and any
incident of such charging shall be treated as a serious violation necessitating
provisions of penalty as per the law.
(3) While fees can be charged
from foreign students without restriction, the freedom to determine the
domestic student fees shall be subject to the condition that no student who gains
admission on merit should be turned away for lack of financing, for which the
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University shall create a credible and
robust programme of financial assistance in the form of scholarships and loans
to ensure that such students can pursue higher studies without any financial
difficulty.
(4) Since no existing fee
regulation guidelines are to be applicable to such Institutions of Eminence
Deemed to be Universities, they will have to set up the institution of
Ombudsman to cater to student grievances and allegations of unfair practice, if
any. The contact details of the Ombudsman shall be prominently displayed by the
Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University on its website, prospectus and
at the premises.
(2)
Flexibility in course structure
(1) The Institution shall have
the freedom to offer courses within a programme as well as to offer degree in
newer areas, after approval of its Governing Council and subject to broadly
conforming to minimum prevailing standards, without consulting the Commission
but with intimation to it.
(2) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall also have flexibility of course structure in
terms of credit hours and number of years to take a degree, after approval of
its Governing Council and subject to broadly conforming to minimum prevailing
standards.
(3) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall have complete flexibility in fixing of curriculum
and syllabus, with no UGC mandated curriculum structure.
(4) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall have the freedom to offer online courses as part
of its programmes (subject to a limit of twenty percent of any programme).
However, this twenty percent restriction would not preclude the Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University from offering certificate courses entirely
through online mode.
(3)
Recruitment of faculty:
(1) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University may recruit faculty from India and abroad. The approach
should be to attract the most talented people, no matter where they come from,
who are open to new ideas and approaches.
(2) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall have complete autonomy in the appointment of
faculty, promotions etc including the autonomy to offer them emoluments and perks
commensurate with their standing as it deems fit.
(3) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University is free to adopt any career progression scheme for its
faculty and the UGC Career Advancement Scheme and associated Regulations
pertaining to the same shall not be automatically applicable in such
Institutions of Eminence Deemed to be Universities.
(4) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University may hire personnel from industry, etc. as faculty, who,
while being experts in their areas, may not have the requisite higher academic
qualifications.
(4)
Academic collaborations:
(1) Academic collaborations
with foreign higher educational institutions ranked in top 500 in global
rankings shall be exempt from approvals by the Government or the Commission,
except with Institutions from negative list of countries determined by the
Ministry of External Affairs or the Ministry of Home Affairs.
(2) The Institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities shall be free to enter into academic
collaborations with Institutions within the country.
(5)
Financial Autonomy:
(1) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall have complete financial autonomy to spend the
resources raised and allocated.
(6)
Inspection:
(1) The existing UGC
Regulations relating to inspection shall not apply to these Institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities.
(2) However, the Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University shall work out the details of a
self-disclosure-cum-review mechanism to ensure quality, with review being done
by the Empowered Expert Committee. The Committee may, if it deems necessary,
take assistance of teams consisting of experts from internationally ranked
Institutions and from Institutions of National Importance.
Regulation - 12. GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL SYSTEM
The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall appoint an Ombudsman to deal with grievances of
students and faculty and allegations of unfair practice. The ombudsman selected
should be independent of the institution or the management now or in the recent
past and concurrence of Empowered Expert Committee shall be taken before
appointment of the ombudsman. The contact details of the Ombudsman shall be
displayed prominently in the campus, on the homepage of the Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University's website and in the prospectus.
Regulation - 13. MONITORING AND REVIEW
(1) The Institutions of
Eminence Deemed to be Universities shall be reviewed once in three years after
their notification as such by the Ministry of Human Resource Development by the
Empowered Expert Committee for adherence to their implementation plans, keeping
in view their fifteen year strategic plans. The monitoring and review shall
continue till the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University gets into top
one hundred in a world ranking of repute for two consecutive years or till
fifteen years, whichever is earlier.
(2) However, the Institutions
shall inform the Empowered Experts Committee every year on the progress made in
realizing the goals laid out in the implementation and strategic plans, in a
manner so prescribed by the Committee.
(3) The Empowered Experts
Committee may also evolve such other monitoring and review systems, especially
in the initial years, with the objective of guiding and supervising the growth
of the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University.
(4) Apart from this, the
Empowered Experts Committee may require the Institutions to annually
self-report and publicly display certain information relating to compliance
with their implementation and strategic plans,
(5) The annual review exercise
should be completed by June each year.
(6) The Committee may suggest
remedial action to address deficiencies, if any. The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall take steps to address them within a reasonable
time period.
Regulation - 14. ACCREDITATION and RANKING
(1) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University, within five years of its notification will have to get
accreditation as per Regulation 4.2.15.
(2) The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University, within five years of its notification declaring it as
an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University, shall get itself ranked in
the National Institutional Ranking Framework and in an International Ranking
index of repute. An existing Institution which has been declared Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University should start getting ranked from the year when
it gets a Letter of Intent. All Institutions should then continue to get
themselves ranked in the National and International ranking frameworks.
Regulation - 15. RESERVATION POLICY.
The Public Institutions of
Eminence shall implement the reservation policy in admissions and recruitment
in accordance with any Act of Parliament for the time being in force.
Regulation - 16. INSTITUTION TO BE UNITARY.
The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall be a unitary Institution Deemed to be University
and shall not affiliate any other Institution.
Regulation - 17. USE OF THE WORD ‘UNIVERSITY’.
The Institution shall not
use the word ‘University’ suffixed to its name but may mention the words
“Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University” within parenthesis suffixed
thereto.
Regulation - 18. PROHIBITION OF USE OF CERTAIN WORDS IN NOMENCLATURE.
Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall not be permitted to use the words, “Indian” or
“National Institute” in their respective names unless they have been
established by the Central Government or State Government.
Regulation - 19. DISTANCE EDUCATION.
The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University may offer courses under distance mode, without any
approvals, in accordance with the minimum standards laid down by the
Commission. This provision shall also apply to Government owned and controlled
Deemed to be Universities which have been declared Institutions of Eminence
under UGC (Declaration of Government Educational Institutions as Institutions
of Eminence) Guidelines, 2017.
Regulation - 20. CORPUS FUND
(1) In the case of Institutions
of Eminence Deemed to be Universities not owned or controlled by the
Government, a Corpus Fund as mentioned in Regulation 4.2.11 shall be created
and maintained permanently in the name of the Institution of Eminence Deemed to
be University.
(2) The Corpus Fund shall not
be liquidated without prior permission of the Empowered Experts Committee.
(3) The interest accrued on the
Corpus Fund may be used only for the purpose of development of the Institution
of Eminence Deemed to be University.
(4) The Empowered Experts
Committee may call for the accounts of the Institution of Eminence Deemed to be
University to verify compliance with the corpus and other additional guaranteed
and committed financing requirements. In the event of withdrawal of the
declaration of ‘Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University’ status the
Corpus Fund shall stand forfeited to the Commission for meeting the
liabilities, if any (including any penalty), and the balance would be returned
after meeting the liabilities within one year.
Regulation - 21. PENALTIES
(1) If the Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University is unable to meet the goals at the end of the
fifth and subsequent years and there are grave deviations, as determined by the
Empowered Expert Committee, from the implementation plan, the Empowered Experts
Committee may make appropriate recommendations to the UGC which shall forward
it to the Ministry of Human Resource Development to take action under these
Regulations.
(2) The Ministry of Human
Resource Development, on recommendation of the Empowered Experts Committee as
forwarded by the UGC, may take any one or more of the actions given below:
(a) Withdrawing of any or all
additional incentives given to it under these Regulations.
(b) Removal of the Institution
of Eminence status and replacing it by ordinary Deemed to be University status,
wherein it shall be deemed to be set up under UGC (Institutions Deemed to be
Universities) Regulations, 2016.
(c) Removal of Institution of
Eminence Deemed to be University status and asking it to get affiliated to any
existing State University.
(d) Stopping of admissions for
specified number of years.
Regulation - 22. AUDIT.
The Institution of Eminence
Deemed to be University shall be audited every year by a Chartered Accountant
and the audit report shall be sent to Commission within nine months of the
completion of the financial year.
For the purposes of this
Regulation, “Charted Accountant” shall have the same meaning as contained in
the Charted Accountants Act, 1949.
Regulation - 23. MISCELLANEOUS
(1) In case there is any
difficulty encountered in the course of implementation of any of the
provisions, the Government, with intention to remove the difficulty, may give
suitable clarifications, not amounting to change in Regulation itself.
(2) The Empowered Experts
Committee shall examine proposals on issues not covered in the Regulations and
make recommendations to the Competent Authorities.
(3) UGC will provide all
secretarial assistance to the programme, including to the Empowered Expert
Committee including honorarium to be paid to the members. The expenditure on
account of accessing any expert either domestic or international by Empowered
Expert Committee shall also be borne by UGC. There shall be no provision for
creation of posts.
[1] Vide Notification No. F. 1-4/2016(CPP-I)/DU,
dated 29-8-2017, published in the Gazette of India, Extra., Part III, Section
4, No. 337, dated 30-9-2017.