Question : Relaxation in Criteria

(a) whether the University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to relax criteria for women including pregnant and disabled candidates pursuing M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees in the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof along with the review of relief measures taken by the Government;
(c) whether the Government has made any consultation with UGC in this regard and if so, the details thereof;
(d) whether the Government is ready to expand these norms to State and Private universities and if so, the details thereof; and
(e) the number of women researchers in various streams in the country including Bundelkhand region, State-wise and the other steps taken by the Government for rise in contribution of women in the research field in addition to giving relief measures in research work?

MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
(SMT. SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)

(a) to (e): Yes, Madam. The University Grants Commission (UGC) has initiated several measures to facilitate continued enrolment of women students in Ph.D. courses and its feeder course i.e. M.Phil. The UGC constituted a Committee to look into genuine hardships being faced by the Women/PWD researchers under the Chairmanship of Prof. V.S.Chouhan. The measures suggested by the Committee include amendments in the Ph.D./M.Phil. Regulations by relaxing the maximum duration for completion of Ph.D. or M.Phil. for the women candidates and persons with disability (more than 40% disability) one year of M.Phil and two years for Ph.D; allowing transfer of research data in case of relocation of an Ph.D./M.Phil. woman scholar due to marriage or otherwise; and allowing women candidates maternity leave/child-care leave once in the entire duration of Ph.D./M.Phil. for up to 240 days. The above recommendation/modification has been incorporated in the UGC (Minimum Standards and procedure for award of M.Phil/Ph.D Degrees) Regulations 2016 which have been approved in its 514th Meeting of the Commission. The UGC Regulations are applicable to all Universities, Deemed to be Universities and Colleges. Further, the UGC is implementing Swami Vivekananda single girl child scholarship for research in social sciences and PG Indira Gandhi Scholarship for single girl child for postgraduate courses to promote the enrolment of women at doctoral and its feeder level.
The UGC has informed that region wise enrollment in research programmes is not being maintained centrally. As per the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) provisional report for 2014-15, 45,482 women were enrolled in Ph.D and 18,695 in M.Phil in higher educational institutions in the country. As per the report, the enrollment of women in the State of Uttar Pradesh in Ph.D programme was 4014 and 612 in M.Phil programme.
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