UGC: 167 universities, colleges to help improve quality of 936

NEW DELHI: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has approved 167 institutions under the ‘Paramarsh’ scheme to mentor 936 institutions not accredited by a public agency. The UGC has set itself the target of helping all institutions attain a minimum accreditation score of 2.5 by the year 2022.

The higher education regulator made it mandatory for all higher education institutions which are over six years old or have had at least two batches of students graduate to get accredited either by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council ( NAAC ) or the National Board of Accreditation ( NBA ).

UGC Scheme

The list of colleges and universities includes Hanraj College, Kirori Mal College and Kamala Nehru College -- all affiliated to Delhi University (DU). Also included among mentors is Osmania University and University of Hyderabad; St. Xavier’s College in Kolkata, Symbiosis International University Pune, Loyola College in Chennai, and HR College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai.

To help institutions get accredited with a good score, the UGC launched the Paramarsh scheme in 2019. Under this initiative, well-performing, accredited institutions will mentor the NAAC accreditation aspiring institutions to upgrade their academic performance and get accredited. As per a notification issued by the commission, “UGC has also set an ambitious target for itself that institutions should get accredited with a minimum score of 2.5 by the year 2022. To accomplish this target, UGC introduced a new initiative called "Paramarsh" in the year 2019 for mentoring the non-accredited institutions.”

A total of 167 mentor institutions have been approved so far under "Paramarsh" to mentor 936 non-accredited HEIs. “A well-designed scheme of mentor-mentee relationship will not only benefit both the institutions but also lead to quality education for the students who are currently enrolled in the Indian higher education system,” the UGC notification reads.

The UGC has also asked all the non accredited institutions to get themselves accredited soon so as to maintain global standards and ensure the quality of our higher education system.

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