25.11.2025

The Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) Bill 2025

Context

The Union government is set to introduce the HECI Bill to establish a unified regulator for higher education, replacing the fragmented oversight of UGC, AICTE, and NCTE as envisioned in the NEP 2020.

About the Bill

Background:

• India’s higher education landscape currently functions under multiple regulators like UGC for general education, AICTE for technical education, and NCTE for teacher training—leading to duplication and delays.
   
• The NEP 2020 recommended a single, integrated regulator to streamline academic standards, ensure quality, and reduce administrative overlap.
   

Structural Design:

• The HECI will function through four specialised verticals:
   
  • National Higher Education Regulatory Council (NHERC): Handles regulatory compliance and institutional standards.
     
  • National Accreditation Council (NAC): Oversees accreditation and quality benchmarking.
     
  • General Education Council (GEC): Frames learning outcomes, curriculum guidelines, and academic expectations.
     
  • Higher Education Grants Council (HEGC): Focuses on funding-related functions, though final control of grants may remain with the ministry.
     
• Exclusions: Medical and legal education are kept outside HECI’s mandate.
   
• Institutional Governance: Each vertical will operate as an independent, expert-driven entity to maintain transparency and integrity.
   

Regulatory Framework

Innovations:

• Integrates multiple regulatory bodies into one cohesive system, removing overlapping mandates.
   
• Establishes uniform standards for curriculum, faculty qualifications, degree norms, and assessment systems.
   
• Accreditation becomes central to ensuring autonomy, linking institutional freedom with demonstrable quality.
   
• The Bill repeals the UGC Act, 1956, formally dissolving the earlier regulatory framework.
   
• Includes provisions for fee oversight and closure of non-compliant institutions.
   

Significance

• Reduces bureaucratic complexity and accelerates institutional decision-making.
   
• Encourages greater autonomy while ensuring accountability through robust accreditation norms.
   
• Supports NEP 2020’s vision of a flexible, less intrusive regulatory environment.
   
• Aims to enhance governance quality across the higher education sector by providing consistency and clarity.
   
• Success hinges on decentralisation, inclusion of states, and safeguarding institutional independence.
   

Way Forward

Implementation Priorities:

• Develop transparent rules of functioning for each vertical with adequate stakeholder consultation.
   
• Ensure state governments, minority institutions, and disadvantaged groups have representation in decision-making.
   
• Build capacity within institutions to meet upgraded accreditation and governance standards.
   

Technology and Transparency:

• Adopt digital governance tools for approvals, accreditation, and compliance reporting.
   
• Maintain publicly accessible quality metrics to enable informed student choices.
   

Regulatory Stability:

• Provide clear guidelines to avoid over-regulation and protect institutional autonomy.
   
• Support institutions during the transition through advisory mechanisms, capacity-building, and phased implementation.
   

Conclusion

The HECI Bill 2025 seeks to overhaul India’s higher education regulation by creating a unified, transparent, and quality-driven system, with effective implementation and balanced autonomy crucial to its long-term success.