AISEC slams proposed HECI Bill, calls it blueprint for centralisation of higher education

By A Representative

The All India Save Education Committee (AISEC) has strongly criticised the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) Bill 2025, which the Union government is expected to table in the upcoming winter session of Parliament. In a statement issued by Prof. Tarun Kanti Naskar, General Secretary of AISEC, the organisation warned that the proposed legislation would severely compromise the autonomy of higher educational institutions across the country.

According to the statement, the Bill seeks to merge the functions of three key statutory bodies—the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE)—into a single overarching commission. Unlike the UGC, which has the authority to disburse funds to higher education institutions (HEIs), the new body would be limited to regulation, accreditation and setting professional standards. This, AISEC argues, would turn the Commission into a “controlling authority” rather than an enabling one.

Prof. Naskar said the proposed structure of the Commission reveals deeper concerns. The Chairperson would be selected by a committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary and comprising senior bureaucrats and government-appointed academics, making the body “fully bureaucratic” and subject to central government influence. While the Bill claims to promote institutional autonomy, it also seeks to monitor academic performance and authorises the closure of institutions deemed to fall short of minimum standards — provisions AISEC says directly undermine academic freedom.

The organisation warned that such powers could lead to widespread closure of institutions, mirroring what it described as the ongoing shutdown of schools in various states. It termed the Bill “a blueprint for centralisation and complete control over higher education”.

AISEC also pointed to several regulations already introduced by the UGC under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 — including the Four-Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUP), National Credit Framework and various qualification frameworks — which it said were adopted without adequate consultation with stakeholders. These measures, the statement noted, have faced stiff resistance from leading educationists, university bodies and academic councils.

In this backdrop, AISEC said the HECI Bill would give the Centre “unfettered powers” to enforce NEP 2020 and push what it described as an agenda of “privatisation, commercialisation, communalisation and centralisation” of higher education. Universities, autonomous colleges and affiliated institutions, it cautioned, would have no option but to comply with directives issued by an all-powerful Commission.

AISEC has urged the Government of India to withdraw the proposed Bill and called upon the academic community nationwide to unite in opposition.

Comments

Academics urge Azim Premji University to drop FIR against Student Reading Circle

By A Representative A group of academics and civil society members has issued an open letter to the leadership of Azim Premji University expressing concern over the filing of a police complaint that led to an FIR against a student-run reading circle following a recent incident of violence on campus. The signatories state that they hold the university in high regard for its commitment to constitutional values, critical inquiry and ethical public engagement, and argue that it is precisely because of this reputation that the present development is troubling.

Was Netaji forced to alter face, die in obscurity in USSR in 1975? Was he so meek?

By Rajiv Shah This should sound almost hilarious. Not only did Subhas Chandra Bose not die in a plane crash in Taipei, nor was he the mysterious Gumnami Baba who reportedly passed away on 16 September 1985 in Ayodhya, but we are now told that he actually died in 1975—date unknown—“in oblivion” somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Which city? Moscow? No one seems to know.

UAPA action against Telangana activist: Criminalising legitimate democratic activity?

By A Representative The National Investigation Agency's Hyderabad branch has issued notices to more than ten individuals in Telangana in connection with FIR No. RC-04/2025. Those served include activists, former student leaders, civil rights advocates, poets, writers, retired schoolteachers, and local leaders associated with the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Indian National Congress.

Asbestos contamination in children’s products highlights global oversight gaps

By A Representative A commentary published by the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has drawn attention to the challenges governments face in responding effectively to global public-health risks. In an article written by Laurie Kazan-Allen and published on March 5, 2026, the author examines how the discovery of asbestos contamination in children’s play products has raised questions about regulatory oversight and international product safety. The article opens by reflecting on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that governments in several countries were slow to respond to early warning signs of the crisis. Referring to the experience of the United Kingdom, the author writes that delays in implementing protective measures contributed to “232,112 recorded deaths and over a million people suffering from long Covid.” The commentary uses this example to illustrate what it describes as the dangers of underestimating emerging threats. Attention then turns...

Aligning too closely with U.S., allies, India’s silence on IRIS Dena raises troubling questions

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The reported sinking of the Iranian ship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka raises troubling questions about international norms and the credibility of the so-called rule-based order. If indeed the vessel was attacked by the American Navy while returning from a joint exercise in Visakhapatnam, it would represent a serious breach of trust and a violation of the principles that govern such cooperative engagements. Warships participating in these exercises are generally not armed for combat; they are meant to symbolize solidarity and friendship. The incident, therefore, is not only shocking but also deeply ironic.

The kitchen as prison: A feminist elegy for domestic slavery

By Garima Srivastava* Kumar Ambuj stands as one of the most incisive voices in contemporary Hindi poetry. His work, stripped of ornamentation, speaks directly to the lived realities of India’s marginalized—women, the rural poor, and those crushed under invisible forms of violence. His celebrated poem “Women Who Cook” (Khānā Banātī Striyāṃ) is not merely about food preparation; it is a searing indictment of patriarchal domestic structures that reduce women’s existence to endless, unpaid labour.

India’s foreign policy at crossroads: Cost of silence in the face of aggression

By Venkatesh Narayanan, Sandeep Pandey The widely anticipated yet unprovoked attack on Iran on March 1 by the United States and Israel has drawn sharp criticism from several quarters around the world. Reports indicate that the strikes have resulted in significant civilian casualties, including 165 elementary school girls, 20 female volleyball players, and many other civilians.

India’s green energy push faces talent crunch amidst record growth at 16% CAGR

By Jag Jivan* A new study by a top consulting firm has found that India’s cleantech sector is entering a decisive growth phase, with strong policy backing, record capacity additions and surging investor interest, but facing mounting pressure on talent supply and rising compensation costs .

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Search This Blog