Parliament Question: Colleges and Universities with English as Medium of Instruction

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-4906 ANSWERED ON- 23/03/2026 Colleges and Universities with English as Medium of Instruction 4906 Shri Adhikari Soumendu:

Will the Minister of Education be pleased to state:

(a) the number of colleges and universities in which english is the medium of instruction and the corresponding figures for regional language for the latest available year 2024, State- wise;

(b) the total enrolment of students by medium of instruction (English, Regional Language, Hindi) in higher education during the last five years, State/year-wise; and

(c) whether there has been an increase or decrease in the number of institutions and students choosing regional languages as the medium of instruction and if so, the implementation details by the State authorities? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR)

(a) to (c): All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) database does not maintain information regarding the institutions’ medium of instruction. As per the information received from the University Grants Commission (UGC), the information about medium of instruction in the programmes being offered by the Higher Education Institutions is not centrally maintained by UGC. Universities, being autonomous institutions, make decisions on academic matters, including the medium of instruction through their Statutory Bodies.

Further, in alignment with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, several initiatives have been undertaken for the promotion of Bharatiya Bhasha in teaching- learning. The initiatives undertaken by the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) include handholding classes in regional languages, peer mentoring, language learning centres, bilingual thesis abstracts, and tools like Bhashini. Tutorials, zero-hour sessions, and mentoring in Indian languages alongside English proficiency programs, along with AI-based translation and multilingual resources are also provided.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has launched the ASMITA (Augmenting Study Materials in Indian Languages through Translation and Academic Writing) initiative to strengthen the use of Indian languages in Higher Educational Institutions.

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has developed Anuvadini App to translate books for Under Graduate and Post Graduate courses and Technical books likeengineering and law in 12 Indian languages. Further, for promotion of mother tongue in teaching and research, AICTE launched ‘Vibrant Advocacy for Advancement and nurturing of Indian Languages (VAANI)’ initiative which provides financial assistance to approved institutions for organising seminars/ workshops/ conferences. The translated books are available for free download on e-KUMBH portal.

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) examination for admission to undergraduate medical courses, the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) examination for admission to undergraduate engineering programmes, and the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) for admission to UG courses in Central Universities are also conducted in 13 languages.

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