New Delhi, 30 September 2026 – A study released Tuesday by SBI Research charts a steep rise in India’s higher‑education sector over the last ten years.
The count of universities climbed to 1,289 in FY24 from 723 in FY14, while recognised colleges expanded to 48,246 from 36,634. Stand‑alone institutions also grew, reaching 15,221 compared with 11,664 a decade earlier.
Student enrolment surpassed 4.5 crore in FY24, with men and women occupying almost equal shares. Collectively, learners from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes made up about 62 per cent of the total intake.
Women’s presence advanced across disciplines. At the undergraduate level, female students outnumbered their male counterparts in science streams, and among PhD candidates the gender split was nearly even.
Teaching staff numbers rose to 17.3 lakh in FY24 from 13.7 lakh in FY14, and women accounted for 45 per cent of faculty. Despite this growth, roughly one‑third of sanctioned teaching posts in centrally funded universities and institutes remain vacant, with the professor level showing the highest shortfall.
The combined tally of Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Management and National Institutes of Technology reached 76 in FY26, up from 59 in FY14. Placements from IIMs increased to about 13,700 in FY24, compared with 7,500 in FY16, while IIT placements grew to roughly 17,500 from 9,500. Median salaries at these premier institutes more than doubled between FY16 and FY24, with IIM graduates now earning a median of over Rs 40 lakh.
The report flags that higher‑education spending continues to hover around 1 per cent of total government outlay, urging a boost in public investment, stronger industry‑academia collaboration, expanded vocational training and greater research funding. It also recommends granting statutory status to the National Testing Agency, exploring a constitutional amendment for a right to free and fair education, reforming examination systems and narrowing regional gaps in student‑teacher ratios.
Image: siasat.com
📰 Source: Siasat Gulf