UGC told to set up interim regulator for distance education

The sector is often criticised for its outdated curriculum and inadequate technology to address student concerns.

A committee set up by the human resource development (HRD) ministry has instructed the University Grants Commission (UGC) to set up an interim regulator and monitor the country’s distance education sector, as Parliament is not likely to pass a Bill on putting in a regulatory authority anytime soon.

Distance education, currently being offered by institutes like Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and a few private universities in the country contribute to 22 per cent of the country’s gross enrolment ratio (GER), but is often criticised for its outdated curriculum and inadequate technology to address student concerns.

The committee has also proposed the establishment of a distance education council of India (DECI), which will monitor and regulate the content, examination and the institutes offering distance education. But, with a number of key HRD ministry bills awaiting clearance, the Bill may not be cleared soon, say officials. DECI is to be set up on the lines of AICTE, UGC and NCTE.  

“The committee recommends the establishment of an independent and effective regulatory authority on distance education, equipped with necessary powers and resources, through an Act of Parliament to determine and regulate the standards of higher education, including technical education through ODL and to promote and co-ordinate amongst the stakeholders for dissemination of quality higher education relevant to the need of the individual and society.  This independent regulatory authority may be called distance education council of India.  Eventually, when the National Council for Higher Education and Research (NCHER) Bill is passed, DECI will get subsumed into the proposed overarching regulator along with other existing regulators, viz. UGC, AICTE, NCTE, etc,” the draft regulation said.

The government was looking to pass the National Council for NCHER, which will merge the existing UGC, AICTE, and other regulatory bodies into a single regulator. While the ministry has taken steps to pass the key Bill, other Bills, including an amendment to the existing AICTE Bill, is also waiting to be cleared by Parliament.

Distance education was conceived as a means to provide higher education for students who are unable to study due to the lack of education infrastructure in the country. India’s GER currently stands at 18 per cent and the government is looking to raise it to 30 per cent by 2020 by rolling out the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan to improve the country’s higher education sector.

The HRD ministry is also planning to set up 200 community colleges in the country and rolling out a programme to extend technical education in the secondary and higher secondary education segment to curb dropout rates at school levels.