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New Delhi: Several National Democratic Alliance-ruled states and leading universities in the country have raised strong objections to the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill, 2025, warning a parliamentary panel of the potential concentration of excessive power over high education regulation in the centre’s hands by the proposed legislation, reported The Hindu.

The bill seeks to overhaul India’s higher education framework by dismantling the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) and replacing them with a single apex regulatory body called the VBSA. The legislation is currently under examination by a joint parliamentary committee chaired by Bharatiya Janata Party MP D. Purandeswari.

BJP allies among states who flagged overreach

According to The Hindu, one of the sharpest rebukes came from Andra Pradesh, governed by the Telugu Desam Party, a BJP ally, which told the panel that several provisions of the legislation could render the state’s legislative authority over high education effectively meaningless. Specifically flagging clause 11 of the legislation, the state warned that it could let the regulatory council bypass state universities altogether in granting degrees, creating “constitutional friction.” It also called for mandatory........

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