Parliament Question: Setting up 57 New Central Universities

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3461 ANSWERED ON- 10.08.2026 Setting up 57 New Central Universities †3461. Shri Kaushalendra Kumar:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government proposes to set up 57 new Central Universities in the country;

(b) if so, whether the Government proposes to set up a new Central University in the State of Bihar; and

(c) if so, the details thereof? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR)

(a) to (c): Presently, there are 48 Central Universities under the administrative control of Ministry of Education. Apart from this, various Ministries have also established their domain specific Central University. Central Universities are envisaged to function as pace setter institutions to provide academic leadership to other institutions in the region. Bihar already has four Central Universities namely Central University of South Bihar, Gaya; Mahatama Gandhi Central University, Motihari; Nalanda University, Nalanda and Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa, Samastipur. Besides Central University, other higher educational institutions like Indian Institute of Technology, Patna; National Institute of Technology Patna; Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya; Indian Institute of Information Technology, Bhagalpur have also been established by this Ministry in Bihar. These educational institutions are also catering to the need of higher education in the State of Bihar.

Establishment of a new Central University near Bhagalpur at the historic site of Vikramshila has been announced. Further, ‘Education’ being a concurrent subject, the State Governments are also taking various initiatives to provide greater access to higher education in their respective States.

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