Assam tables Higher Education Council Bill in assembly to align state framework with NEP 2020

The Assam government has tabled the Assam Higher Education Council Bill, 2026, in the Legislative Assembly, paving the way to establish the Assam State Higher Education Council (ASHEC). The bill proposes establishing an apex body to enhance governance and academic coordination in the state’s higher education sector in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

Assam’s education minister Ranoj Pegu, while introducing the bill, stated that the proposed Assam Higher Education Council would function as an intermediary institution linking the University Grants Commission (UGC), the state government and universities.

The Council will serve as an institutional platform to improve planning, coordination and quality of higher education across Assam while also preserving the autonomy of the state's universities and institutions.

"The Council will bring together the Government, universities, academicians and experts to prepare the State Higher Education Plan, promote academic excellence, improve access and equity, encourage research and innovation, strengthen quality assurance, and facilitate evidence-based policymaking for the future of higher education in Assam," Pegu posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

The education minister, Pegu, also stated that the need for such an apex body came due to the absence of a dedicated mechanism to coordinate academic and administrative matters across institutions of higher education.

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Under the proposed legislation, the council will operate through a two-tier structure, consisting of a general council and the executive council, the report read.

The council will be headed by senior government officials, while the general council will include representatives from universities, autonomous colleges, general colleges and a UGC nominee, it said.

He also proposed that the council would facilitate coordination in both academic and executive matters, providing an institutional mechanism for improved governance of higher education in the state, it added.

Furthermore, the assembly has passed the Majuli University (Amendment) Bill, 2026 to transform the Majuli University of Culture into Majuli University with a multidisciplinary mandate encompassing Arts, Science, Commerce, Management, Technology, and other academic fields, Pegu wrote on this official X account.

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“This landmark reform, aligned with #NEP2020, will create greater opportunities for teaching, research and innovation,” he wrote on X.

In addition, the minister also discussed the impact of Assam floods on the education sector, and said that the government has initiated measures to help students who lost textbooks and uniforms, and to restore the destroyed school buildings, as per the report.

“Fresh textbooks have already been arranged for students in the flood-hit districts of Sivasagar and Charaideo, with distribution scheduled to begin within the next two days. Nearly 1.5 lakh students would require fresh school uniforms following the floods,” he said in the report.

Stating that nearly 80% of schools in several districts of Assam have been affected by the deluge, Pegu said that the renovation and repair of schools would commence immediately after the School Education Department receives the assessment reports prepared in coordination with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), he added.