govt's nod to centralise GU

AGENCIES
Posted on 2008-10-04
NEW DELHI- Giving a new impetus to education, the Union government on Friday approved the establishment of 12 central universities, conversion of four existing state universities and a scheme for providing quality education in Madrassas.
A meeting of the cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh gave its nod for setting up 12 central universities and conversion of four existing state universities including the Goa University, Information and Broadcasting Minister, Mr P R Dasmunsi said here.
The Goa University, Sagar University in Madhya Pradesh, Bilaspur University in Chhattisgarh and Garhwal University in Uttarakhand would be upgraded as central universities. The new universities will be set up in Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Mr Dasmunsi said that a Bill would be introduced for this purpose in the Parliament.
A central university is an university which is established by the Union government, normally by an Act of the Parliament, or a state university that has been given the status of one. The President of India acts as the ‘Visitor’ for all the central universities, and has the power to nominate a few members to the Executive Committee/ Board of Management/ Court/ Selection Committees of the central university in terms of the various statutes and provisions laid down in the University Act. The ministry of human resources and development (MHRD) assists the President of India in the appointment of Vice Chancellors, Court Nominees and Selection Committee Nominees of the central university.
Through another politically significant decision, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) gave its approval for the Rs 325 crore scheme to provide quality education in Madrassas by introducing science, mathematics, social studies, language and English in their curriculum for classes I-XII.