NITI Aayog Charts a Strategy to Globalise India’s Higher Education Sector

NITI Aayog has proposed a roadmap to internationalise India’s higher education by allowing foreign universities to operate within Indian campuses, easing visa and regulatory norms, and boosting academic mobility. The plan addresses rising outbound student numbers, seeks to attract learners, funds research through a $10 billion Bharat Vidya Kosh, and introduces scholarships to position India as an education hub globally.

NITI Aayog has outlined an ambitious plan to deepen the global integration of India’s higher education system, recommending a series of reforms aimed at attracting foreign institutions, encouraging academic mobility, and strengthening India’s research ecosystem.

At the centre of the proposal is a framework that would allow overseas universities to operate within Indian institutions through a “campus within a campus” arrangement.

Under this model, foreign higher education institutions could establish integrated or co-located campuses inside existing public or private Indian universities using a brownfield investment approach. These arrangements would be governed by a 10-year sunset clause and supported by commercial, rent-based structures to ensure long-term viability.

The roadmap, detailed in NITI Aayog’s report Internationalisation of Higher Education in India, released on Monday, reflects the government’s view that global engagement in education is essential for preparing India’s workforce for leadership roles at home and abroad. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 already positions internationalisation as a strategic priority, with a particular emphasis on “Internationalisation at Home” to make global exposure accessible within the country.

The report highlights a sharp rise in the number of Indian students seeking education overseas. In 2024, more than 1.3 million Indian students were enrolled abroad, with Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia emerging as the most preferred destinations. In contrast, inbound student numbers remain modest. During 2021–22, India hosted close to 50,000 foreign students, nearly 30 per cent of whom came from Nepal.

According to NITI Aayog, this widening gap between outbound and inbound mobility points to structural challenges in retaining domestic talent and positioning India as an attractive destination for international learners. To address this imbalance, the report calls for reforms that would simplify administrative systems and enable smoother cross-border movement of students, faculty members, and academic institutions.

Among the proposed measures are streamlined visa procedures, reduced paperwork, and the removal of regulatory hurdles that currently restrict international academic partnerships and exchanges. The think tank has also recommended developing a comprehensive national strategy for implementing internationalisation across higher education and research, overseen by an inter-ministerial task force under the Ministry of Education.

Beyond mobility and collaboration, the report places strong emphasis on financing research and innovation. It proposes the creation of a National Research Sovereign Wealth Impact Fund, tentatively named the Bharat Vidya Kosh, to support research, innovation, and capacity building in higher education and skilling. The fund would have a targeted corpus of $10 billion, with half of the contributions expected from the Indian diaspora or philanthropic sources and the remaining half matched by the central government.

In addition, NITI Aayog has suggested launching a dedicated scholarship scheme for international students, titled the Vishwa Bandhu Scholarship. The programme would support two-year master’s degrees and be designed in line with leading global scholarship models. Proposed benefits include study-linked internships, competitive stipends, tuition assistance, research funding, accommodation and travel allowances, and comprehensive health insurance.

Taken together, the recommendations signal a push to reposition India as both a global knowledge hub and a preferred destination for international students and researchers, while strengthening its ability to compete in an increasingly interconnected higher education landscape.