13 foreign universities receive letters of intent to set up campuses in India

Thirteen Letters of Intent have been issued to foreign higher education institutions (FHEIs) from Australia, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States to establish campuses in India, including in Bengaluru (Karnataka), Delhi NCR, Mumbai (Maharashtra) and Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan informed Parliament.

Among these, the University of Southampton, UK, began offering courses in August 2025 at its campus in Gurugram, Haryana, the Minister said in a written response to a question raised by Andhra Pradesh MP Gumma Thanuja Rani.

Pradhan noted regulatory provisions now permit twinning, joint degree and dual degree programmes through academic collaborations between Indian and foreign institutions, with 103 institutions currently offering such programmes out of 230 eligible universities.

Since the rollout of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, efforts have been made to strengthen cultural and traditional knowledge systems, with the systematic integration of Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) into higher education curricula to promote Indian values, heritage and indigenous knowledge, the Minister added.

Under NEP 2020, the school education system has shifted to a 5+3+3+4 curriculum structure. Initiatives such as Samagra Shiksha, the updated PM POSHAN scheme and the release of new curriculum frameworks have also been implemented.

“In order to promote multilingual education, the Bharatiya Bhasha Pustak Scheme has been designed to provide textbooks in digital format for school and higher education subjects in 22 Indian languages over the next three years. The UGC also allows students to write answers in local languages in examinations, even if programmes are offered in English, and encourages translation of original works and teaching in local languages at universities,” Pradhan said.

He added 41 institutions are offering engineering courses across 10 states in 12 regional languages. “CUET is conducted in 13 languages, with participation from around 240 institutions. JEE (Mains) and NEET (UG) are also conducted in 13 languages, involving over three million students,” he said.

When asked about Kerala and the provisions for states choosing not to implement the policy, the Minister said NEP 2020 allows flexibility in timelines and methodology and is being implemented in a phased and consultative manner.