Niti Aayog reveals comprehensive plan to boost quality of Indian public universities

Niti Aayog, the government’s policy think tank, has recommended a series of measures to strengthen state public universities, including reforms in faculty recruitment and accreditation processes, the introduction of a national research policy, and the promotion of humanities research.

Other key suggestions include measuring teaching quality each semester and creating state-level higher education roadmaps.

The report, titled "Expanding Quality Education through State Public Universities (SPUs)," was prepared in consultation with 20 states and marks the think tank’s first such report.

The recommendations align with the National Education Policy (NEP) and the government’s vision for a developed India by 2047.

While many opposition-ruled states have opposed the NEP 2020 and new UGC faculty recruitment rules, states like Karnataka and Kerala have held or planned conferences to discuss these issues, with Tamil Nadu drafting its own education policy.

The report also highlights that state public universities (SPUs) enroll 81% of all higher education students in India.

As of Jan 2025, there are 495 SPUs, with Karnataka leading at 43, followed by West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh, each with 38.

Over the past 14 years, SPUs have grown by over 50%, with student enrollment rising by 38% from 2011 to 2021, reaching around 3.24 crore students.

“The report provides a distilled essence of the insights gained from extensive stakeholder consultations held with state government officers of higher and technical education departments from over 20 states and union territories, Vice-Chancellors (V-Cs) of 50 state public universities, and heads of several state higher education councils,” said VK Paul, member, Niti Aayog.

The report presents 80 recommendations categorized into short, medium, and long-term actions across four main areas: education quality, governance, funding and finance, and employability.

Within education quality, Niti Aayog further divides the focus into research, pedagogy, digitalization, and internationalization.

To enhance research quality, the Aayog proposes the introduction of a National Research Policy and the establishment of Centres of Excellence within groups of state public universities (SPUs) to tackle regional challenges.

It also calls for greater emphasis on promoting humanities and fundamental research, supporting research commercialization and start-ups, and designating top SPUs as research and knowledge hubs.

Among the key recommendations is the regular assessment of teaching quality on a semester basis.

The report also suggests expanding the use of digital learning platforms, fostering partnerships with foreign universities to offer global perspectives, and attracting international talent to leading universities.

Additionally, it recommends setting up a state-level Infrastructure Finance Agency for universities, modeled on the Higher Education Finance Agency (HEFA).

“It is suggested that state universities focus on robust alumni and corporate engagement programs for financial support," it stated.

Pankaj Mittal, Secretary General of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), highlighted that during discussions with state representatives, vice-chancellors identified three major concerns: limited funding, governance challenges with state governments, and the need for capacity building. The report addresses these issues.

To improve governance, the report recommends that state universities develop state-level higher education roadmaps for 2047, strengthen state higher education councils, and reform the faculty recruitment and management processes.

It also suggests revising the composition of governing councils and encouraging administrative appointments from the teaching community.

Additionally, the report calls for reforms in the accreditation and affiliation processes, with an emphasis on fostering greater collaboration between state higher education and technical education departments.

To boost student employability, it proposes a stronger focus on internships and apprenticeships.

“State universities must support entrepreneurship and innovation and encourage students to be job creators. They must also strengthen university-industry collaboration through joint research and consultancy projects," it stated.

The report also suggests granting faculty greater autonomy to design curricula that are aligned with industry needs, incorporating sports programs, and establishing Lifelong Learning Centres within state public universities.

It identifies the top 10 states showing the most significant growth in the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) from 2011-12 to 2021-22, which include Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, West Bengal, Karnataka, Goa, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Rajasthan.

The report also highlights the five best-performing states in terms of Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) during the same period: Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Punjab, and Tamil Nadu.

In terms of Gender Parity Index (GPI), another key indicator of state universities' performance, the top 10 states are Nagaland, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim, Haryana, Rajasthan, Tripura, and Tamil Nadu.

Niti Aayog Vice-Chairperson Suman Bery emphasized that public universities in many global education systems, such as those in the US and Brazil, set the standard for excellence.

“While India has institutions like IITs, state public universities must also strive for high standards. The think tank’s role is to create evidence through research, while implementation remains the Education Ministry’s responsibility. I hope the recommendations would be enthusiastically taken forward by the ministries in the central and state governments," said Bery.