Parliament Question: Establishment of New Central University in Bihar

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 144 ANSWERED ON 20/07/2026 Establishment of New Central University in Bihar

144. Dr. Alok Kumar Suman:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

(a) the details of Central educational institutions established or upgraded during the last three years, State-wise;

(b) whether the Government proposes to establish any new Central University, Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) or other higher educational institution in Bihar, if so, the details thereof;

(c) the details of funds released under Samagra Shiksha to Bihar;

(d) the measures taken by the Government to improve digital education and research infrastructure; and

(e) the steps taken by the Government to improve employability among graduates? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR)

(a) & (b): Prior to the year 2014, 16 Indian Institutes of Technologies (IITs) were functioning in the country. After 2014, in pursuance to Budget Announcement 2014-15 and 2015-16, six new IITs have been established in the States/UT of Andhra Pradesh (IIT Tirupati), Kerala (IIT Palakkad), Chhattisgarh (IIT Bhilai), Jammu & Kashmir (IIT Jammu), Goa (IIT Goa) and Karnataka (IIT Dharwad). Further, in pursuance to the Budget announcement 2015-16, the Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad in Jharkhand was accorded the status of IIT in the year of 2016. At present 23 IITs are functioning in the country.

13 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) were functioning in the country prior to the year 2014 and at present there are 22 IIMs. After 2014, eight new IIMs have been established in the States/ UT of Punjab (IIM Amritsar), Bihar (IIM Bodhgaya), Odisha (IIM Sambalpur), Jammu & Kashmir (IIM Jammu), Himachal Pradesh (IIM Sirmaur), Maharashtra (IIM Nagpur), Andhra Pradesh (IIM Visakhapatnam) and Assam (IIM Guwahati). In the year 2023, National Institute for Training in Industrial Engineering (NITIE), Mumbai has been converted into IIM Mumbai.30 National Institutes of Technology (NITs) and one Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST) were functioning in the country prior to 2014 and at present there are 31 NITs apart from one IIEST. NIT Andhra Pradesh has been established in the year 2015.

9 Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs) were functioning in the country prior to 2014 and at present there are 25 IIITs. After 2014, sixteen new IIITs have been established in the States of Andhra Pradesh (IIITDM Kurnool), Haryana (IIIT Sonepat), Himachal Pradesh (IIIT Una), West Bengal (IIIT Kalyani), Karnataka (IIIT Dharwad, IIIT Raichur), Manipur (IIIT Senapati), Kerala (IIIT Kottayam), Uttar Pradesh (IIIT Lucknow), Jharkhand (IIIT Ranchi), Maharashtra (IIIT Pune, IIIT Nagpur), Madhya Pradesh (IIIT Bhopal), Gujarat (IIIT Surat), Bihar (IIIT Bhagalpur) and Tripura (IIIT Agartala).

5 Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs) and one Indian Institute of Science

(IISc) were functioning in the Country prior to 2014. At present there are seven IISERs with two new IISERs established in the state of Andhra Pradesh (IISER Tirupati) and Odisha (IISER Berhampur) after 2014.

40 Central Universities (CUs) were functioning in the country prior to 2014 and at present there are 48 CUs. Eight CUs have been established in the States/UTs of Bihar (Mahatma Gandhi Central University Motihari, Bihar), Andhra Pradesh (Central University of Andhra Pradesh, Central Tribal University of Andhra Pradesh, National Sanskrit University Andhra Pradesh), Telangana (Sammakka Sarakka Tribal University Telangana), Delhi (Central Sanskrit University Delhi, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri National Sanskrit University Delhi), Ladakh (Sindhu Central University Ladakh). Presently there is one proposal under consideration of this Ministry for establishment of a Central University in Bhagalpur, Bihar near the historic site of Vikramshila University.

Setting up of higher education institutions is a continuous and ongoing process. Depending on the need, educational institutions are opened from time to time. National Education Policy 2020 provides to ensure full access, equity, and inclusion. Education being subject matter of concurrent list, it is joint responsibility of Central as well as State Government to take action for implementation of NEP 2020. The Government is committed to provide quality education to all.

(c) : Under Samagra Shiksha Scheme in FY 2025-26 an amount of Rs. 5518.47 cr has been released for Bihar.

(d) : The Ministry of Education implements ICT and Digital initiatives under Samagra Shiksha to enhance digital learning in schools across the country. The initiatives aim to enhance the quality of education by integrating technology into teaching and learning processes. It also inter- alia promotes vocational education by supporting States and UTs to introduce skill exposure for students in Grades 6 to 8 and NSQF-aligned skill courses for Grades9 to 12.

A comprehensive initiative called PM eVidya was initiated by Ministry of Education as part of Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan on 17th May, 2020, which unifies all efforts related to digital/online/on-air education to enable multi-mode access to education across the country.

States/UTs collaborate with NCERT to utilise, monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of theseinitiatives as per their requirements. NCERT also provides regular guidance/ feedback to States/UTs on the quality of these initiatives.

Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA) is the Nation’s digital infrastructure for providing quality e-content for school education in States/UTs and QR coded Energised Textbooks (ETBs) for all grades (One Nation, One Digital platform). To promote crucial critical thinking skills and to give space for creativity, more than 614 Virtual Labs have been created and made available on the DIKSHA platform.

Ministry of Education is also implementing the National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT) in alignment with the vision of NEP

2020. The scheme aims to leverage the potential of ICT, in all processes of education. Under the NMEICT scheme Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds (SWAYAM) platform hosts content curated by premier institutions and is available free of cost with the approach of “Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime” Learning. As on date, more than 4400 unique courses have been offered through SWAYAM. These courses have witnessed cumulative enrolments of more than 6 Crores.

To boost research and innovation, the Government has established the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), which seeks to harness the research potential of universities and colleges, support academic research, and facilitate translational research in emerging technologies and national priority areas. Other initiatives such as the Prime Minister's Research Fellowship

(PMRF), Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration (SPARC), IMPRINT, Uchhatar Avishkar Yojana (UAY) and Institutions of Eminence (IoE) continue to enhance research capacity, innovation and collaboration between academia, industry and international institutions.

(e) : The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 envisages integration of skill development and vocational education with mainstream higher education to enhance employability, entrepreneurship and lifelong learning. UGC has notified the National Higher Education Qualifications Framework (NHEQF), aligned with the National Credit Framework (NCrF), to enable integration of general, vocational and experiential learning. The National Credit Framework facilitates credit accumulation and transfer across academic, vocational and skill education, while the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) supports seamless academic mobility.

UGC has also issued Guidelines for Internship/Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Programmes

(IEDP), enabling undergraduate students to acquire industry-relevant skills through structured internships and apprenticeships integrated with their degree programmes.

AICTE is actively strengthening skill development by embedding it into technical education. It partners with industries and institutions to offer online skill courses aligned with the regular curriculum, along with skill-focused programmes, compulsory internships, and vocational degrees such as Bachelor of Vocation (B.Voc). These initiatives are designed to build students’ practical abilities and improve employability. Additionally, AICTE has signed MoUs with leading industries and organisations to support internships, skill-building, and faculty upskilling, including hands-on exposure to Industry 4.0 technologies.Employability Skill module has been included as a part of Job Roles/SWAYAM courses in the curriculum which includes Communication Skills, Self-Management Skills, Information and Communication Technology Skills, Entrepreneurship Skills, and Green Skills.

To support skill development, the SWAYAM Plus portal has also been launched, focusing on upskilling and reskilling the workforce. More than 500 courses have been developed curated from 89 industry partners across 17 sectors and offered on emerging areas such as AI, Data Analyst etc.

So far, more than 6,00,000 students registered on the platform.

The National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS) bridges the gap between academic learning and industry requirements by providing structured on-the-job training to graduates and diploma holders. The Scheme promotes industry-integrated education through Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Programmes (AEDP), supports apprenticeships in emerging areas such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), and facilitates academic credit integration through the NATS Assessment and Creditisation Framework. During the last five financial years, over 12.94 lakh apprentices have been engaged under the Scheme. The NATS 2.0 Portal, launched on 30.07.2024, has further strengthened the apprenticeship ecosystem by enabling participation of over 11,355 Higher Education Institutions and more than 15,840 establishments.

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