UGC Chairman Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar retires: CUET UG, PG to NEP 2020 reforms; here's some key contributions

Professor Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar, the Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC), has retired. He took over the role in February 2022. During his tenure, he initiated a number of important things, such as the implementation of the Central University Entrance Test (CUET) for both undergraduate and postgraduate admissions. He was also instrumental in putting into practice some of the provisions of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2022. Among other actions, he suggested that the UGC CARE List be disbanded and argued for more flexibility in the educational qualifications needed for faculty hiring.

Up until now, the Ministry of Education has not issued a name for the position that has been kept vacant.

Mamidala not only acted as the UGC Chairman but also the vice-chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) from 2016 to 2022.

Following are some of the steps taken by erstwhile UGC Chief

--The University Grants Commission (UGC) has permitted institutions of higher learning to enroll students twice a year. Though previous regulations permitted admissions of students only for July-August, the recent directive by the UGC now means that students can be admitted in January/February as well as in July/August in the next academic session. The recent decision by the UGC now renders it upon the institutions whether they desire to do admissions either in both cycles or in one cycle based on their infrastructure and faculty.

--The University Grants Commission brought out the draft guidelines for the apprenticeship embedded degree programme with a view to facilitate a student enrolled in an undergraduate programme of a Higher Educational Institution to undergo apprenticeship training as an integrated part of the degree programme according to these guidelines.

-- The University Grants Commission (UGC) has initiated application for the Ishan Uday Scholarship for the North Eastern Region (NER).

-- It also eased the hiring contract teachers and opens the vice chancellor post to non-academics.

--During his term, he also promulgated the Minimum Qualifications for Appointment and Promotion of Teachers and Academic Staff in Universities and Colleges and Measures for the Maintenance of Standards in Higher Education) Regulations, 2025. UGC Chairman Prof Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar had previously informed The Indian Express, "The Draft UGC Regulations 2025 aims to ensure the highest standards in universities by introducing a more inclusive and transparent selection process.". The key purpose is to boost the quality of education, boost research innovation, align university administration with world-best practices, and implement the visionary change of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. We embrace healthy criticism and work together towards enhancing our nation's higher education system.

-- The Commission also brought in the draft regulations on promoting equity in the higher educational institutions. The draft proposed the establishment of 'Equity committees' to investigate complaints of discrimination; 'equity squads' to be "vigilant" and prevent such occurrences; and an 'equity helpline' for filing cases. The 2025 draft regulations have maintained the provision of equal opportunity centres, but this time around its working and composition has been delineated.

--UGC has declared a new framework of regulations to simplify the process of recognizing and accrediting equivalence to academic qualifications achieved from foreign institutions. The UGC (Recognition and Grant of Equivalence to Qualifications Obtained from Foreign Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2025, permit the recognition of qualifications earned from foreign institutions' offshore campuses, subject to certain conditions.

--The Draft UGC (Minimum Standards of Instructions in the Award of UG and PG Degrees) Regulations, 2024, envisioned major reforms both in the process of admissions as well as in the organisational structure of academic programmes. He also added provisions for multiple entry and exit points, recognition of prior learning, as well as fast-track and slow-track degree programmes, to make the duration of undergraduate programmes shorter or longer.

-- Suspension of the UGC-CARE list—a lists of quality academic journals launched in 2018. It has now been substituted with a series of indicative parameters for choosing journals, based on eight broad criteria.

-- The UGC, during his term, implemented a new set of regulations that would streamline the process of recognition and granting equivalence to academic qualifications obtained from foreign institutions. The UGC (Recognition and Grant of Equivalence to Qualifications Obtained from Foreign Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2025, now allow for the recognition of qualifications acquired from offshore campuses of foreign universities.