Attracting foreign Direct Investment

Context: The entry of foreign universities will have to carefully gauged in parity with regulatory, governance and content norms applicable to Indian universities.

Key Areas impacting the Arrival of Foreign Universities in India

• Entry subject to approval: with rigorous credentials check in terms of years of existence, track record, ranking and accreditation. 
• There must be an efficient approval process and certainty on timelines. 
• Requirements for setting up huge campuses should be relooked.
• No profiteering: The New Education Policy acknowledges that surplus may be generated, but should be reinvested in the educational activity. 
• Profits earned should be allowed to be freely remitted to the foreign university, or its not-for-profit parent
•  Excess cash should be allowed to be remitted to the parent organisation.
• Legal entity set-up: A foreign university could be required to set up a not-for-profit entity in India
• Treat the Indian campus as a branch of the foreign university. 
• Encourage the ease in foreign ownership and control of the Indian not-for profit entity and related assets (immoveable property).
• Governance: NEP mentions governance as a potential area for regulation at par with Indian autonomous universities. 
• Every Institute of Eminence (IoE) need to frame a governance plan committed to the highest global standards. 
• Governance systems of foreign universities need testing or regulation under Indian law. 
• Content: offered by selected foreign universities should be as good, if not better, than that offered by Indian ones. 
• Recognise alternate structures such as credit transfer arrangements 
• It would keep foreign universities engaged with the Indian market. 
•  NEP states that credits acquired in foreign universities will be counted towards award of degree by an Indian university.

Conclusion: The right mix of light and tight regulations or, in some cases, no regulation, such as on academic content may well be the difference between attracting best in class foreign universities, or driving them away.