Maharashtra's Empowered Autonomy Colleges Face Joint Degree Hurdle
Three years after the Maharashtra government granted 'empowered autonomy' status to select colleges and formally incorporated provisions under the statutes of the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, state authorities and public universities have encountered a significant regulatory obstacle. They have discovered that the University Grants Commission (UGC) does not currently permit the awarding of joint degrees, which was a central feature of this progressive educational policy.
Graduation Plans Disrupted
Despite the first batch of students from these empowered autonomous colleges being set to graduate, they will not receive degrees carrying both the college's and the affiliating university's names and logos, as originally planned. Sources indicate this development has created confusion and disappointment among educational institutions and students alike.
While these colleges can still benefit from the enhanced academic status and administrative flexibility that comes with empowered autonomy—a step above regular autonomous status—the inability to award joint degrees significantly weakens one of its key intended benefits. This limitation affects the perceived value and recognition of the degrees both nationally and internationally.
Scope of Affected Institutions
Under Mumbai University alone, approximately 25 leading colleges in the city have been granted empowered autonomy status. This prestigious list includes prominent institutions such as:
- St Xavier's College
- Jai Hind College
- Ramnarain Ruia College
- Mithibai College
- NM College
- Sophia College
- RA Podar College
- SIES College
- KJ Somaiya College
- Ramniranjan Jhunjhunwala College
- Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work
- Birla College
- Engineering colleges including Sardar Patel Institute of Technology and DJ Sanghvi College of Engineering
Institutional Perspectives and Challenges
State government and public university officials were not available for comment on this developing situation. However, insights from college principals reveal the practical implications of this regulatory limitation.
A city college principal expressed concern, stating, "We have been announcing that joint degrees will be granted to students with our college's name and logo during our orientation programmes." The batch graduating in 2025-26 was supposed to be the first to receive joint degrees under this new status.
Another principal noted, "Though there is no official directive, we are hearing unofficially that the joint degrees cannot be granted." This principal added that while names of universities such as Mumbai and Pune definitely held significant value, having the college's name on the degree would have elevated their institutional status considerably in both national and international academic circles.
Broader Educational Policy Context
Another principal pointed out that this situation suggests the government appears to be revisiting and revising some of the decisions taken during the early stages of implementing the National Education Policy 2020. This indicates potential alignment challenges between state-level educational reforms and national regulatory frameworks.
According to the established statutes, colleges eligible for empowered autonomy status must meet specific criteria:
- Possess a NAAC cumulative grade point average of 3.01 or above
- Have at least 60% of their courses accredited by the National Board of Accreditation
- Have enjoyed autonomous status for at least five years
After following a prescribed procedure, qualifying colleges were granted the empowered autonomy status. Though the concept was provisioned in the Public Universities' Act of 2016, uniform statutes were established in 2023 that enumerated their powers based on a state committee's recommendations and aligned with the NEP's vision of creating degree-awarding institutions.
Current Implementation and Future Possibilities
While there has been no change in the funding and grant status given to such aided institutions, colleges have enjoyed expanded academic liberties under this framework. However, an official from one of the state universities revealed that many leading institutions have not utilized the 'empowered' status extensively, particularly regarding the provision that allowed them to collaborate with each other and offer programs jointly.
"Though a few such experiments have been conducted, not many colleges are actively collaborating or sharing resources," said the official. This suggests that while the framework exists, practical implementation has been limited. The official added optimistically that in the future, provisions for joint degrees could potentially be made available through regulatory adjustments or policy revisions.
The current situation highlights the complex interplay between state educational initiatives and national regulatory bodies, creating challenges for institutions seeking to enhance their academic standing through innovative degree structures.
