Big Education Overhaul: Cabinet Clears Bill to Replace UGC, AICTE

New Delhi, December 13, 2025: In a landmark move poised to reshape India’s higher education system, the Union Cabinet has given its approval to a major legislative change. The bill, previously known as the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) Bill, has now been renamed the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhikshan Bill.

This approved legislation is set to establish a single, overarching regulator for higher education, a key commitment outlined in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The new body will replace the existing fragmented regulatory framework, which includes the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE).

Why a New Regulator? Simplifying the System

For decades, India’s higher education has been governed by multiple agencies with overlapping and sometimes conflicting roles.

• The UGC handles general universities.
• The AICTE oversees technical education (like Engineering and MBA).
• The NCTE regulates teacher training (like B.Ed courses).

This multi-regulator system often led to bureaucratic delays, inconsistent standards, and confusion for institutions seeking approvals. The new Commission aims to simplify governance, reduce red tape, and shift the focus from micromanagement to a greater emphasis on academic quality and learning outcomes.

Three Core Functions of the New Commission

The newly proposed Commission will have a focused mandate, streamlining the regulatory process into three major functions:

1. Regulation: Setting the basic rules for the establishment and operation of higher education institutions (HEIs).
2. Accreditation: Evaluating and ranking colleges and universities based on their performance and quality. This will determine their level of institutional autonomy.
3. Setting Professional Standards: Framing common guidelines for curriculum, faculty qualifications, and learning outcomes across the country.

Key Exclusion: Notably, medical and legal education will remain outside the scope of this new body, continuing to be governed by their respective specialised councils.

What About Funding?

An interesting point of the new structure is the separation of regulatory power from financial grants. While the old UGC handled both, the new Commission will focus only on regulation and standards.

The function of distributing grants and funds to public universities will remain with the administrative ministry (the Ministry of Education), at least for now. This separation is intended to prevent a conflict of interest, ensuring that the regulator’s quality checks are independent of an institution’s financial needs.

Concerns and Next Steps

While the move is hailed as a necessary reform, it has also faced criticism. Concerns have been raised by some stakeholders, including a Parliamentary Panel, about the potential for excessive centralisation of power in the hands of the Union Government, which could diminish the autonomy of state universities.

With Cabinet approval secured, the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhikshan Bill is now set to be introduced in Parliament. Its passage would mark the most significant structural change in Indian higher education in a generation, fulfilling a core vision of the NEP 2020 for “light but tight” regulation. The focus now shifts to the parliamentary debate and the eventual implementation of this monumental reform.