(a) Whether the Government has decided to promote admission of foreign nationals in centrally funded institutions in the country and the Indian students in institutions abroad for undergraduate engineering programmes;
(b) If so, the details thereof; and
(c) The funds earmarked and the response received so far?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (SMT. D. PURANDESWARI)
(a) to (c): Supernumerary seats to the extent of 15% of approved intake in All India
Council for Technical Education (AICTE) approved institutions/University Departments
offering technical courses leading to Diploma, Degree and Post-Graduate Degree in
Engineering & Technology, Architecture & Town Planning, Pharmacy, Applied Arts, MBA &
MCA, Hotel Management & Catering Technology are reserved for foreign Nationals/Persons
of Indian origin (PIO)/Non Resident Indian (NRI) including children of workers in Gulf
countries.
According to information furnished by Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs under the
scheme of `Scholarship programme for Diaspora children (SPDC),` 100 scholarship upto US$
3600/-per annum are offered to PIO and NRI students (preference being given to PIO students)
for Undergraduate courses in Engineering / Technology, Humanities / Liberal Arts, Commerce,
Management, Journalism, Hotel Management, Agriculture / Animal Husbandry etc. The scheme is
open to NRIs / PIOs from 40 countries with substantial Indian Diaspora population.
No separate information is available in respect of Indian students pursuing
undergraduate engineering programme in institutions abroad. There are no restrictions
on cross-border students’ mobility and such mobility can be owing to a variety of reasons
such as affordability, access to bank loans, exposure to foreign societies, aptitude for
particular branches of studies, inability to gain admission to top Indian institutions
due to capacity limitation etc. Another reason could be the interest among students to
join some of the universities abroad which have a long history of education and research
spread over centuries.