NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel has recommended expanding the government’s Institution of Eminence (IoE) scheme to cover Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).
In its report on the Demands for Grants of the Department of Higher Education (2025-26) tabled in Parliament this week, the parliamentary standing committee on education, women, children, youth and sports recommended that greater autonomy be extended to constituent colleges of the existing IoEs, such as Delhi University (DU).
JNU V-C Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit had opened up last year about the varsity facing financial pressure.
“We have been demanding the ‘Eminence’ tag. We would get Rs 1,000 crore under that tag,” she had said, noting how the move could help ease the financial strain on the university.
The IoE scheme was launched in 2017 with an aim to enable Indian higher education institutions to enter global rankings. The IoE tag provides greater autonomy to the institutes. The government also provides funding to the public institutes under this initiative.
So far, only eight public institutions have received the coveted tag.