NEW DELHI: The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill, 2025 is set to adopt the report ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament, paving the way for the government to table the legislation that seeks to establish a single higher education regulator.
The proposed regulator will replace the University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council for Technical Education, and the National Council for Teacher Education.
According to sources, the 31-member Parliamentary panel headed by BJP MP Daggubati Purandeswari is likely to adopt the draft report at its next meeting on July 17. The government is expected to introduce the Bill during the upcoming Parliament session after incorporating the committee’s recommendations.
The VBSA Bill, introduced during the last winter session, was sent to the JPC after protests from the Opposition. Sources said opposition members will formally record dissent notes and seek deferment of the report’s adoption, saying several provisions could significantly change the structure of the higher education system and undermine institutional autonomy.
During an eight-hour meeting on Tuesday, the committee held a clause-by-clause examination of the Bill. Opposition MPs proposed multiple amendments, raising concerns over excessive centralisation of powers, encroachment on the role of states, bureaucratisation of higher education, dilution of the UGC’s consultative mandate, and the absence of funding mechanism.
Unlike the UGC, the proposed commission will not be responsible for disbursing grants to universities. Funding decisions will rest with the Ministry of Education.
Some MPs sought a mechanism for state participation and safeguards on quality standards and fee transparency for foreign universities and operating in India.
According to the government, the bill is aimed at reducing overlaps among multiple bodies.
