In the last five years, there has been a major leap in the number of students from Kerala going abroad to study. Every year more than thirty thousand students go to study in China, Russia, Ukraine, UK, US and other countries. Apart from medical studies, many go for undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

Many private centers are also functioning in Kerala which send students for overseas education. Last year alone, 400,000 Indian students went to study abroad. In the wake of Covid and the war in Ukraine, the central government had intervened and brought back many students. In fact, it was then that the central government also realized that so many students were studying abroad. Subsequently, the Medical Council even relaxed the rules to start more medical colleges in the country. Parents have to bear huge financial expenses for study and accommodation in foreign nations. As the students doing PG courses etc. abroad started getting jobs in the country, the flow of students abroad has increased tremendously. In this context, leading education experts have demanded that foreign universities be allowed to open campuses in India. It is welcome that UGC has now opened the way for it.

The draft guidelines say that the admission procedures, fees and course structure of such universities can be decided by the respective institutions themselves. No major universities will come here if unnecessary restrictions are imposed. One of the conditions is that the classes should be offline, which is good. In turn, foreign universities will have to spend money to build infrastructure and other facilities in India. It will also provide more employment opportunities to those who have adequate educational qualifications in India. As the economy is booming, those who complete their studies in such universities can get high paying jobs within the nation itself. This decision by the UGC will also lead to a major curb on the flow of money from India to ther nations in the name of education. Higher education departnment, among other related centres of the state, should take the initiative to invite such universities in Kerala. Such campuses can provide an indirect source of income to many people as well as increase employment opportunities if the money required for the education of students in Kerala is spent right here. Anticipating all this, the government should make efforts to invite leading foreign universities to Kerala. Move such as leasing government land for ninety years and so on should also be considered.