If studying in a foreign University is a long cherished dream for you, the recent decision by the government might bring it closer to the reality than ever. The government is contemplating setting up foreign Universities in the SEZs across the country.
With the political conditions in the US and the UK changing fast, the Indian students have been looking for alternate foreign education options in the past few weeks. The government has now taken cognizance of the matter and has decided to open the doors for foreign universities in the country. Some of the best known Universities in the world are expected to be invited by the government to open their campuses in the country.
This move is expected to benefit the country in several ways including -
- This move can attract a number of Asian students to study in India
- This would help the country in tackling the issue of brain drain which has affected the Indian economy for many years
- As per the official numbers, Indian students spent 1.98 billion USD (almost 14,000 crores) on foreign education in March 31, 2016 and a total sum of close to 2.47 billion USD (almost 16,700 crore) was given to foreign universities
What exactly is a Special Economic Zone (SEZ)?
- A SEZ (Special Economic Zone) is an area within the country which is specially designed for duty free transactions
- SEZs are treated as foreign territories which help the country in attracting foreign investment
- A number of countries including China, India, Jordan, Poland, Kazakhstan, Philippines and Russia have established SEZs for various purposes
- The companies operating in the SEZs don't have to pay any Domestic tariffs but instead have to pay export and import taxes
As per an official in the commerce ministry, "We have advised them (the HRD ministry) to put universities within SEZs which are then technically not part of the Indian system but offer degrees which conform to some international standard cleared by the HRD ministry. Now it is up to them to drive the process"
He further added, "Repatriation of revenue to the parent campus is one of the contentious issues. Operating from SEZs will help in solving this repatriation of income issue and allow such institutions to operate with little interference from (domestic) regulators, though they will not be totally immune to it,"