The Union Government of India has formed a committee to merge the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) and National Board of Accreditation (NBA) into a single accreditation and ranking body.
The committee is led by –
- Bhushan Patwardhan, a former Vice-Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC)
- Dr. Surender Prasad, Ex-Director of IIT Delhi
- Indranil Manna, the Vice Chancellor of the Birla Institute of Technology (BIT)
- K. N. Ganesh, the Vice Chancellor of the Central University of Hyderabad
- B. J. Rao
- Dr. Manju Singh, who is the Joint Secretary of the UGC. She will serve as the committee’s coordinator
This article will further discuss important details about the newly formed committee. Students are advised to go through the whole article to learn more about this committee.
NAAC and NBA Merge – Overview
| Head of the committee | Bhushan Patwardhan |
| Coordinator of the committee | Dr. Manju Singh |
| Number of members | Six |
| Organisations to be merged |
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Note: This six-person group will research the NIRF ranking system, the NBA’s process for accreditation, and NAAC’s methodology for accreditation. Along with developing a framework to align the three to create the proposed National Accreditation Council (NAC), it will suggest a suitable mechanism to enable communication between the bodies.
What is NAAC?
- The full form of NAAC is the National Assessment and Accreditation Council.
- The primary goal of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) is to conduct accreditation of colleges and other higher education institutions.
- The NAAC develops the set of criteria that educational institutions can use to determine if they qualify to submit an application for NAAC accreditation.
- It offers access to federal and state financial schemes to various institutions.
- Additionally, it assists with the easy transfer of student credits across institutions.
- It is responsible for publishing the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), a yearly ranking of higher education institutions.
What is NIRF?
- The full form of NIRF is the National Institutional Ranking Framework.
- It is a framework that describes a system for ranking educational institutions all around the nation.
- Students planning to pursue higher education in India benefit from knowing the rankings of institutions via NIRF ranking.
What is the NBA?
- The full form of NBA is the National Board of Accreditation.
- NBA is an independent accrediting agency that deals with the accreditation of engineering and other technical colleges according to the standard of the education provided.
- Any Higher Education Institution (HEI) that wants to apply for and be granted NBA accreditation must make sure that all requirements are completely followed and that all required documents and information are error-free and wholly legitimate.
NAAC and NBA Merge – Reasons
- According to the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP), a meta-accrediting agency in the form of NAC is the need of the hour to ensure a smooth alignment between the NIRF, NAAC, and NBA as per the NEP’s goals.
- NIRF recently added that, “NEP envisions the formation of the National Advisory Council (NAC), a body that will ensure the coordinated operation of these bodies and align them with NEP goals.”
What is the Purpose of the Committee?
- This six-person committee will conduct an in-depth study on the NIRF ranking system, NBA’s process for accreditation, and NAAC’s methodology for accreditation.
- The committee will also work on developing a framework to align the three to create the proposed National Accreditation Council (NAC).
- It will suggest a suitable mechanism to enable communication between the bodies and ensure a smooth alignment and merging of NAAC and NBA into a new single accreditation and ranking body.
FAQs
What is NAAC?
The full form of NAAC is the National Assessment and Accreditation Council. Its primary goal is to conduct accreditation of colleges and other higher education institutions. NAAC develops a set of criteria that educational institutions can use to determine if they qualify to submit an application for NAAC accreditation. It offers access to federal and state financial schemes to various institutions. Additionally, it assists with the easy transfer of student credits across institutions. It is responsible for publishing the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), a yearly ranking of higher education institutions.
Who heads the committee which has been set up to ensure the merging of the NAAC and NBA?
The committee is led by Bhushan Patwardhan, a former vice-chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC), and includes Dr. Surender Prasad, an ex-director of IIT Delhi; Indranil Manna, the vice chancellor of the Birla Institute of Technology (BIT) in Ranchi; K. N. Ganesh, the vice chancellor of the Central University of Hyderabad; B. J. Rao; and Dr. Manju Singh, who is the joint secretary of the UGC. She will serve as the committee's coordinator.
What is NIRF?
The full form of NIRF is the National Institutional Ranking Framework. It is a framework that describes a system for ranking educational institutions all around the nation. Students planning to pursue higher education in India benefit from knowing the rankings of institutions via NIRF ranking.
