23 universities, 279 technical institutes in India are fake: cautions UGC

There are 23 fake universities in the country while 279 technical institutes in the country are operating without the authority to confer degrees, says a new report by the university Grants Commission (UGC).

According to the UGC, 279 institutes in the country are offering engineering and other technical courses without the regulator's permission.

Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of fake universities (9), while Delhi has the most fake colleges (66) offering engineering and technical courses.

Delhi tops the chart with 66 fake colleges while Telangana, UP, West Bengal, Maharasthra also have a huge number of fake technical institutes

UGC has given detailed information on these fake universities and fake technical institutes on the UGC website www.ugc.ac.in and AICTE website www.aicte-india.org.

Since education certificates issued by such colleges and institutes are a waste, the UGC has warned students of such fake universities ahead of the new academic session that will start in April.

''A list of unapproved and unregulated technical institutions has been sent to the concerned state authorities for taking strict action against such institutions,'' a UGC official said.

The UGC releases a list on unapproved institutions and universities operating across the country every year, ahead of the start of the academic year, to caution students against falling into such traps that would end up as worthless exercises.

Minister of state for human resource development (HRD) Mahendra Nath Pandey, recently told the Rajya Sabha that his ministry had written to state governments to investigate the matter and register police complaints against fake colleges.

The technical education regulator, the AICTE, has also issued notices to those schools who have not taken its approval before applying to such colleges.