Centre Govt Must Review Land & Infrastructure Norms to Enable Higher Education Expansion: Dr. Anshu Kataria

Business To Business, New Delhi, 03 March 2026: Dr. Anshu Kataria, President of the Federation of Self Financing Technical Institutions (FSFTI) and the Punjab Unaided Colleges Association (PUCA), has urged the Central Government to undertake a comprehensive review of land and infrastructure norms governing the establishment of colleges and universities in India.
Regulations “Outdated for Today’s Reality”
Addressing challenges faced by self-financing institutions, Dr. Kataria said that many existing regulations were framed in a different economic context and are no longer aligned with present-day realities.
While acknowledging that regulatory oversight is vital for maintaining academic quality, he cautioned that overly stringent norms are now constraining the expansion of higher education capacity.
Projected Demand by 2040
Dr. Kataria highlighted the scale of future demand:

• India may require around 2,500 universities by 2040
• Nearly 1 lakh colleges will be needed
• Target to raise Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) to 55–60%

• Transparent and predictable regulatory frameworks
• Investment-friendly policies
• Rationalised land and infrastructure norms
• Encouraging credible education providers to expand into underserved districts