Keeping in view the provisions of the UGC Act, 1956 and directions from Supreme Court, national higher education regulator University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed 127 institutions to restrain from using the word 'University' with the name of a “Deemed to be University” in any manner.
The Commission has asked the institutes to not to use the the word “University” in their advertisements, website, website addresses, e-mail addresses, letter heads, communications, hoardings etc.
“Failing which,” a letter from the Commission warned that, “necessary action would be initiated against the Deemed to be University in accordance with the UGC (Institutions Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2019”.
“Instead, the Institution may mention the word "Deemed to be University" within parenthesis suffixed thereto,” the letter said.
"No institution, whether a corporate body or not, other than a University established or incorporated by or under a Central Act, a Provincial Act or a State Act shall be entitled to have the word "University" associated with its name in any manner whatsoever," the UGC letter quoted this order from the Supreme Court.
It also said that, inspite of the directions from the Supreme Court and UGC, some of the Deemed to be Universities are still using the word 'University' in one way or other.
“Pursuant to the directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, the UGC vide its letter No. F. 5-1/2017 (CPP-I/DU) dated 13.11.2017 directed all the Institutions Deemed to be Universities to restrain from using the word 'University' with its name,” the letter said.
As per the official MHRD website, “An Institution of Higher Education, other than universities, working at a very high standard in specific area of study, can be declared by the Central Government on the advice of the UGC as an Institution ‘Deemed-to-be-university'. Institutions that are ‘deemed-to-be-university' enjoy academic status and privileges of a university.”
