Context:

“Education imparted is useless, unless one learns how to live with the society.” - Poet Tiruvalluvar in his 140th Thirukkural.

• Reflecting the above idea of Tiruvalluvar, the National Education Policy 2020 seeks to impart holistic and socially relevant education.
• To realise the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047, India requires citizens capable of leadership.
• The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 2025, aims to reimagine higher education institutions to develop such citizens.
• This article highlights how the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025 seeks to reform India’s higher education regulation by aligning it with Tiruvalluvar’s vision of socially relevant education, the National Education Policy 2020, and the national goal of Viksit Bharat 2047, through streamlined regulation, transparency, and outcome-oriented governance.

Need for Change in Higher Education Regulation

• India’s higher education system has expanded rapidly in scale, but its regulatory framework has not kept pace.
• Multiple statutory bodies with overlapping mandates have resulted in excessive approvals, inspections, and compliance requirements.
• This over-regulation diverts institutions from their core functions of teaching, research, and innovation, forcing them to focus more on processes than outcomes and limiting flexibility, collaboration, and curriculum updates.
• NEP 2020 and the Rationale for Reform
  • The National Education Policy 2020 acknowledged these challenges and proposed a “light but tight” regulatory framework.
    • A framework that ensures transparency and quality while reducing procedural burdens and granting greater autonomy to well-performing institutions.
  • The emphasis is on accountability through outcomes rather than paperwork-driven oversight.

Key Reforms Proposed in the Bill

• Structural Reforms
  • The Bill advances this vision by replacing fragmented oversight with coordinated standards, streamlined regulation, and credible quality assurance.
  • Anchored in Entry 66 of the Union List, it establishes an apex umbrella body—the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan—with three distinct councils for regulation, accreditation, and standard-setting.
  • This clear separation of roles is intended to enhance credibility and avoid conflicts of interest.
• Unifying the Regulatory Architecture
  • To modernise governance, the Bill proposes repealing the University Grants Commission Act, 1956, the All India Council for Technical Education Act, 1987, and the National Council for Teacher Education Act, 1993.
  • This would bring relevant higher education institutions under a single, unified framework for coordinated standard-setting and oversight.
• Transparency Through Technology
  • The Bill also envisages a technology-enabled single-window system based on public self-disclosure.
  • Institutions would publish key information on governance, finances, infrastructure, faculty, programmes, and outcomes, ensuring continuous transparency and forming the basis for accreditation and public accountability.

Key Impact

• Youth Empowerment and Learning Outcomes
  • The Bill can enable youth empowerment at scale by streamlining regulation, expanding access to quality institutions, and helping raise the Gross Enrolment Ratio through faster capacity-building and programme expansion.
  • It redirects institutional focus toward meaningful teaching, interdisciplinary learning, and lifelong reskilling and upskilling.
• Students as Active Stakeholders
  • By institutionalising student feedback on academic quality and the learning experience, along with robust grievance redress mechanisms, the Bill empowers students to become active stakeholders.
  • This enables them to demand quality, reward good governance, and contribute to institutional improvement through structured feedback.
• Global Standards with Indian Priorities
  • The Bill can accelerate the adoption of global best practices while remaining rooted in Indian priorities.
  • A coherent standards framework supports learner and faculty mobility, collaborative research, and international credibility based on outcomes, ethics, research culture, and student experience—helping attract global talent while retaining Indian students and faculty.
• Transparent and Smart Governance
  • The Bill modernises governance through a faceless, technology-enabled single-window system that reduces discretion and delays, promotes integrity, and improves predictability.
  • Meaningful, audited public disclosure builds trust, while differentiated autonomy for well-performing institutions enables excellence and diversity without compromising quality.
• Outcome-Oriented Regulation
  • Overall, the Bill advances smarter regulation—focused on outcomes, learner welfare, and national priorities—by combining common standards with responsive oversight and autonomy as a tool for institutional excellence.

Atmanirbharta through Accountable and Innovative Higher Education

• Atmanirbharta in higher education lies in empowering institutions to pursue ambitious goals, innovate responsibly, and remain accountable to society.
• By aligning standards, regulation, and accreditation into a coherent and transparent framework, the Bill can help nurture the socially responsible and capable citizens envisioned by Tiruvalluvar.