Against the backdrop of a March 20 decree of the conferring substantial autonomy on 52 institutions of higher education including 24 deemed and two private universities, the Delhi-based market research firm C fore constituted a 4,249-strong sample respondents database for the EW India’s top 100 Private Universities 2018-19 – Summiya Yasmeen THE 4,249 SAMPLE RESPONDENTS polled by Delhi-based market research firm C fore for the EducationWorld India Private University Rankings (EWIPUR) 2018-19 have voted the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE, estb.1953) — accorded the status of a deemed (private) university in 1993 — India’s #1 private university for the third consecutive year. This top ranking has come at a propitious time for MAHE which after being permitted to assume the title of Manipal University for 11 years, has been obliged to revert to its academy status following a whimsical UGC (University Grants Commission) decree of November 29, 2017 applicable to all private varsities. Nevertheless, despite this seeming demotion, following a more recent (March 20) decree, it is one of 52 institutions of higher education conferred substantial autonomy by UGC. Under UGC’s “freedom charter”, these select 52 institutions (and eight autonomous colleges), highly rated by the Bangalore-based National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), will have the freedom to start new courses, establish off-campus learning centres, introduce new skills development programmes, hire foreign faculty, enroll foreign students, give incentive-based emoluments to faculty, enter into academic collaborations and run open distance learning programmes. “I am delighted about MAHE being ranked India’s premier private university for the third consecutive year. We owe the high reputation of this institution to our faculty and students’ dedication to teaching, learning and research. I am especially pleased that we have been rated #1 on the parameter of infrastructure, and highly rated on the important parameters of research and innovation and diversity of study programmes. Now with UGC’s grant of autonomy, we will be able to start greenfield colleges, introduce new study programmes and establish learning centres quickly without prior regulatory approvals and red tape. We are also set to roll out a plan to establish three new colleges — a medical college in Jamshedpur, a campus offering new-age programmes such as humanities, business, management and art in Bangalore, and an international campus in Colombo. We are now looking forward to MAHE being included in the Central government’s list of ten private institutes of eminence which will receive government grants to meet more challenging goals. This will pave the way for MAHE to be ranked among the world’s Top 200 universities in the next five years,” says Dr. Vinod Bhat, FRCS and alumnus of Glasgow University who signed up with MAHE in 1988 and was appointed vice chancellor in 2015. Currently, MAHE provides medical, engineering, business and hotel management, pharmacy, nursing and paramedical education to 33,000 students in its 22 colleges. Even as MAHE has retained its #1 seat at top table, further down the Top 10 league table of India’s premier 100 private universities there’s been a considerable…
