Union Minister M M Pallam Raju today expressed hope that Parliament would pass a legislation prohibiting unfair practices in higher educational institutions, in the forthcoming Monsoon session.
Raju also sought cooperation from the states to tighten the noose around such institutions found involved in irregularities.
"Institutes have run away. Therefore, it is important that the states and the Centre work in tandem to check malpractice. We are hoping that the states would act faster.
"Unfortunately, we could not pass the legislation but we hope to pass it in the Monsoon session of Parliament," the HRD minister told reporters in response to a query in this regard.
He was referring to the Prohibition of Unfair Practices Bill, which is stuck in Parliament for nearly two years now.
Raju as well as his predecessor Kapil Sibil had met the Opposition to build a consensus on the passage of this legislation and other bills aimed at reforming the higher education sector in the country. But the bills have been lying in Parliament.
Meghalaya, which has a sizable number of national and state-level institutes, has witnessed mushrooming of private educational institutes in recent years. Some of these institutes were reported to have been involved in alleged irregularities.
A committee, set up under the state regulatory body governing higher educational institutes, recently submitted a report to the Meghalaya government.
When asked about the findings of the report, state higher education minister R C Laloo refused to divulge its contents. "First, I have to care of the interest of the students," he told reporters.
Earlier, Raju laid the foundation stone of the campus of the English and Foreign Languages University here. The HRD Minister is on a two-day tour to Meghalaya.
