Pune
The Monsoon session of the State assembly approved the status of two more private universities in the Pune area, taking the number of private universities in Pune to 17. The two newly accredited universities are the Deccan Education Society (DES) Pune University and MIT Vishwaprayag University.
There is a growing trend among state educational institutions to build self-financing universities. Furthermore, the number of private universities in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad has grown in recent years. In this regard, the state government has encouraged colleges to pursue an autonomous policy.
According to the information of the University Grants Commission (UGC), there are currently more than 22 private universities in the state, of which 12 universities are operating in the Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad areas.
In the list of these universities in the academic year 2023-24, JSPM University, Dr P A Inamdar, and Pimpri-Chinchwad University have been added. Some educational institutions in Pune are in the process of establishing private universities.
“Considering all the three types of universities in Pune; government, self-funded and private, the total number of universities is likely to be around 25. In the future, the number of private universities will also increase in metro cities like Mumbai Nagpur, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar,” said Prof Hrishikesh Khatri a senior education expert.