Parliament Question: Lack of facilities in Central universities despite fee hikes

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION No.126 ANSWERED ON 11.02.2026 Lack of facilities in Central universities despite fee hikes 126# Shri Ramji Lal Suman:

Will the Minister of Education be pleased to state:

(a) the charges levied on students for fees and various facilities by increasing each head in Central universities of the country including Delhi University (DU) during the last three years, head-wise and amount-wise;

(b) whether it is a fact that Central universities, like private universities, are increasing fees charged to students, making it increasingly difficult for children from underprivileged class to access higher education; and

(c) whether it is also a fact that Central universities lag behind private universities in providing facilities to students? ANSWER MINISTER OF EDUCATION (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

(a) to (c) A statement is laid on the Table of the House. *****STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (c) OF RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 126 FOR ANSWER ON 11TH FEBRUARY, 2026 ASKED BY SHRI RAMJI LAL SUMAN, HON’BLE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT REGARDING LACK OF FACILITIES IN CENTRAL UNIVERSITIES DESPITE FEE HIKES.

(a) to (c) All Central Universities, including Delhi University, are statutory autonomous organisations established under the respective Central Acts of Parliament and governed by the provisions of the Acts and Statues, Ordinances made thereunder. The Universities are competent to take administrative and academic decisions including revision of fee structure for students, with the approval of its statutory bodies such as Executive Council, Academic Council, Finance Committee and Court etc. The data regarding fee charged by the Central Universities is maintained at institution level.

However, the Central Universities charge fees at minimal rates as they are fully supported through grants-in-aid by Ministry of Education, Government of India. The grant-in-aid to Central Universities has been increased more than 3 times from Rs.

5634.85 crore in FY 2014-15 to Rs. 16990.07 crore in FY 2025-26. In addition, the Government is implementing various scholarship/fellowship schemes like PM-USP Central Sector Scheme of Scholarship, Junior Research Fellowship in Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, National Scholarship for Postgraduate Studies, Ishan Uday Special Scholarship Scheme for North Eastern Region etc. for providing financial assistance to all categories of students subject to extant scheme guidelines. From academic year 2022-23 to 2024-25, more than three (3) crore scholarships have been

provided and Rs. 30246 crore has been released to the students of higher education under various schemes. Further, the PM Vidyalaxmi, a new central sector scheme has been launched on 6th November 2024. The main objective of the scheme is to ensure that no student is denied the opportunity to pursue higher education due to financial constraints. Under the scheme, collateral- free and guarantor-free education loan is

provided to all the students who get merit-based admission in top Quality Higher Education Institutions (QHEIs) and who desire to avail the education loan. The main objective of these schemes is to ensure that no student is denied the opportunity to pursue higher education due to financial constraints.

In National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) accreditation, thirty (30) Central Universities hold ‘A’ Grade or above (A+, A++) reflecting strong quality assurance. In the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), 2025-26 University Ranking, multiple Central Universities such as Jawaharlal Nehru University, Banaras Hindu University, Jamia Milia Islamia, Aligarh Muslim University, University of Hyderabad and University of Delhi consistently appear in the top national positions underscoring their strong domestic performance. Similarly, in the latest QS World Ranking 2026, six (6) Central Universities have been featured underscoring their global academic presence.

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