Riyaz Bhat
Srinagar, Jul 15 : The Jammu and Kashmir Higher Education Department is drafting a ‘Private University Policy’ for establishing the private universities in the region.
Top officials of the department informed the news agency, that it was in contact with all stakeholders for the clearance of all the related issues.
“In order to send a concrete proposal to the Ministry of Education (Mo) and to invite the private players to establish the universities, we are holding discussions regularly with all concerned stakeholders and we are seeking suggestions from them,” the official said.
He further said that the policy will be sent to various concerned departments for suggestions and discussions, including Finance, Law, Revenue, Industry, and Planning.
The policy draft, as per official sources, will address crucial issues such as land allotment and obtaining necessary permissions for setting up universities. Once finalized, the draft will be presented for approval at the Administrative Council meeting.
As per the official sources, the policy will include provisions for reserving seats for local youth, providing scholarships to needy students, and other relevant issues to promote education within Jammu and Kashmir. “This initiative is expected to be instrumental in attracting investors and enhancing the educational infrastructure in the region.”
Meanwhile Principal Secretary Higher Education Department, Alok Kumar acknowledged that it was working on drafting the private university policy.
“Yes we are working on drafting the private university policy. However, I cannot share further details in this regard as of now,” he said.
Pertinently, KNO in February-2024 reported that in Jammu and Kashmir only 15 percent of higher education students prefer to study in private unaided and aided colleges.
The official documents in this regard had revealed that the enrollment of private and government colleges based on actual response in a survey states that there were a total of 2,13,213 students enrolled in private and government colleges of Jammu and Kashmir.
Among the total number of enrolled students, 23,580 were enrolled in private unaided colleges, 4038 in private aided.
However, in comparison to the private colleges, the official figures reveal that in government colleges across Jammu and Kashmir, at least 1,85,595 students were enrolled.
Besides, the documents state that there were a total of 337 private and government colleges functioning in Jammu and Kashmir.
The survey based on actual response received from the sampled stakeholders reveals that a total of 127 private unaided, 21 aided, and 189 government colleges were functioning in Jammu and Kashmir.
