Over 7.5 lakh Indian students went to study abroad in 2022; 68% more than 2021

NEW DELHI: Over 7.5 lakh students went abroad till December last year to pursue higher education, minister of state for education, Subhas Sarkar said in a written reply to Lok Sabha today. Till November, 6,46,206 students went overseas.

According to the data shared by the education ministry, around 7,50,365 students went abroad in 2022 which is 68 percent more than 2021 when 4,44,553 students went outside the country for education.

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When asked whether the government has taken note that Indian students are going abroad to get higher education and their numbers are increasing constantly every year, the minister replied, “Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs maintains departure and arrival data of Indians. But there is no index for capturing the category of Indians going abroad for higher education purpose. Purpose of Indians going abroad for higher education is captured manually based either on their verbal disclosure or the type of visa of the destination country produced by them at the time of immigration clearance.”

The minister was also asked if it is a fact that the amount spent by Indian students in pursuing education abroad is higher than the budget of India. To this, the minister replied that the education department does not maintain this information.

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Further, Sarkar told the Parliament that as of now, there is no proposal to set up an international university in the country. However, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has drafted regulations for setting up of foreign university campuses in India.

“The draft University Grants Commission (Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions In India) Regulations, 2023 was placed in the public domain, vide public notice dated 5th January, 2023, seeking feedback, suggestions, comments etc. from all the stakeholders by 18th January, 2023. However, in view of the requests received from the stakeholders, the last date for receiving comments on the draft Regulations has been extended till 20th February, 2023,” the MoS added.