Higher Education

Clause (3) of Article 77 ("Conduct of Business of the Government of India ") of the Constitution of India lays down as follows:

"(3) The President shall make rules for the more convenient transaction of the business of the Government of India , and for the allocation among Ministers of the said business".

Under the above provision, the President has made the "Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961", rule 2 of which reads as follows:

"2. Allocation of Business:The business of the Government of India shall be transacted in the Ministries, Departments, Secretariats and Offices specified in the First Schedule to these rules (all of which are hereinafter referred to as 'Departments')".

Further, Rule 3(1) of the above Rules says that

"The distribution of subjects among the Departments shall be specified in the Second Schedule to these Rules...".

A Ministry or Department is responsible for formulation of policies of the Government in relation to business allocated to it and also for the execution and review of those policies. The Ministry of Education (MoE) is one of the Ministries specified in the First Schedule of the above Rules, and consists of the following two Departments:

  • Department of School Education & Literacy (SE & L)
  • Department of Higher Education (HE)

The Education Minister heads the Ministry of Education. Currently, he is assisted by a Minister of State each in the two Departments.

Subjects Allocated to the Department

The following subjects are allocated to the Department of Higher Education, as per Second Schedule to the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961:

  • University education; Central Universities; Rural Higher Education, Foreign Aid Programme relating to Higher Education, Technical Education Planning.
  • Institutions of higher learning (other than Universities).
  • Audio Visual Education with reference to the items in the list
  • Production of University level textbooks in Regional Languages.
  • The Copyright Act, 1957 (14 of 1957) and International Conventions on Copyrights.
  • Educational research
  • Publications, information and statistics
  • Development and propagation of Hindi, including multi-lingual dictionaries.
  • Grant of Financial assistance for the teaching and promotion of Hindi
  • Propagation and development of Sanskrit.
  • Rehabilitation and other problems relating to displaced teachers and students
  • Central Advisory Board of Education.
  • UNESCO and Indian National Commission for Cooperation with UNESCO.
  • Matters relating to all scholarships, including those offered by foreign countries and foreign agencies, in subjects dealt with by this Department but excluding scholarships to students belonging to scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes and General Scholarships Schemes and scholarships to foreign students and different schemes.
  • Education and Welfare of Indian Students overseas; Education Departments of Indian Missions overseas; Financial assistance to education institutions and Indian Students' Associations abroad.
  • Educational Exchange Programmes, exchange of teachers, professors, educationists, technologists, etc.; programme of exchange of scholars between India and foreign countries.
  • Grant of permission to teachers of Universities, colleges and institutions of higher learning to accept assignments abroad.
  • Admission of foreign students in Indian Institutions.
  • Charities and Charitable Institutions, Charities and Religious Endowments pertaining to subjects dealt within this Department.
  • Adhoc scientific research, other than research in higher mathematics, nuclear science and atomic energy, in universities and educational institutions.
  • Vigyan Mandirs.
  • General Policy regarding partial financial assistance to Scientists going abroad for studies in fields other than mathematics, nuclear science and atomic energy.
  • Expansion, Development and Coordination of Technical Education.
  • School of Planning and Architecture.
  • Regional Schools of Printing.
  • Grants-in-aid to State Government institutions, non-Government institutions, professional bodies and technical institutions of Union Territories for technical education. Grants-in-aid for post-graduate studies in basic sciences, grants-in-aid for development of higher scientific and technological education and research in educational institutions; Grants-in-aid for fundamental research in science and technology, grants to individuals for fundamental research.
  • All Indian Council for Technical Education, including conduct of its National Diploma and National Certificate Examinations.
  • Practical training facilities for students of engineering and technological institutions.
  • Recognition of professional technical qualification for purposes of recruitment to posts under Government of India.
  • National Research Professorships and Fellowships.
  • Holding of Foreign Examination in the fields of professional and technical education in India
  • University Grants Commission.
  • National Book Trust.
  • Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad.
  • Indian School of Mines and Applied Geology, Dhanbad.
  • Indian Institutes of Technology at Kharagpur, Mumbai, Kanpur, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati and Roorkee.
  • Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
  • The Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.
  • International Students Houses in India and abroad.
  • Schemes for grant of financial assistance to voluntary organisations for promotion of modern Indian languages.
  • Regulation of Engineering Professional Services.

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Last Updated by admin on Friday, 19 February 2021 - 11:36am