5 pvt univs get nod in K’taka; 6 in pipeline

5 pvt univs get nod in K’taka; 6 in pipeline

Sandeep.Moudgal@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:19.04.2021

Five entrants have joined the growing league of private/deemed universities in Karnataka, with the state government giving the go-ahead in a notification issued on April 16.

The five universities — St Joseph’s, New Horizon, Sri Jagadguru Murugarajendra, Vidyashilp and Atria — will now be allowed to expand their campuses and launch new courses. Murugarajendra University will be based out of Chitradurga, about 200km from here, and the other four will be in Bengaluru.

The addition of five varsities will take the state’s total of such universities to 30. A senior officer said that at least 6-7 colleges and education institutions are seeking the university status, and the tally may breach the 40 mark in the next two years. Deputy CM CN Ashwath Narayan, who holds the higher education portfolio, told TOI that there is an increasing need to bring more private universities.

Govt strengthening public varsities: Min

With the decision raising a debate on whether Karnataka would “privatise” higher education over the next few years, the state government said the way forward is to increase the number of private universities and also consolidate the strengths of the public varsities in the state.

“Most of these institutions, which are being given the university status, are not-for-profit organisations. With our economy being more knowledge-driven, we need to strengthen our education system with investments,” said deputy chief minister CN Ashwath Narayan.

He also said the state is strengthening its existing public universities and institutions. “We are integrating technology to support our universities to match the needs of the industry. From corporate social responsibility funds to setting up our own source code for the learning management system, the government is investing in our institution as well,” he said.

The Karnataka State Higher Education Council said the government will give emphasis to public universities and colleges as well. “Our intention is to increase the number of public institutions with more researchoriented focus. However, when people apply for a university status, we will examine the infrastructure and necessary requirements,” said KSHEC vice-chairman P Thimmegowda.

A member of the KSHEC said when the state doesn’t have funds to ramp up the quality of education in public varsities, it is obvious private ones will mushroom to drive the market.

Applicant needs 25 acres, 3,000 students

As per the law, any private/deemed university applicant needs 25 acres of land and at least 3,000 students on its campus. With the new National Education Policy, these requirements may be diluted due to the growing cost of land and increased need of practical courses.