See bigger revolution than telecom in edu: Kapil Sibal

Excerpts from India Tonight on CNBC-TV18 Watch the full show » RELATED NEWS Why is education sector attracting money, experts find out Kapil Sibal shifts onus of education to the government Education must be given priority sector status: Kapil Sibal

Q: Will such foreign universities be required to reserve seats for SC, ST and OBCs or will they like Indian private universities be exempt from reservations?

A: The law of the land that applies to unaided private universities will apply to unaided foreign institutions.

Q: Which means that they are not required to have reservations?

A: Whatever the law is, tomorrow the law may change. But that law at present requires unaided education providers not to reserve at this point in time.

Q: That will apply?

A: That will apply.

Q: What about the fees that foreign universities or other foreign education providers can charge, will they be regulated by the government or again like private Indian universities will they be free to charge what they want?

A: There is no issue of regulation. But whoever I have spoken to has said that the cost of Indian education in terms of the engagement of individuals, labour, human resource, and cost for infrastructure is much less. Consequently, the cost of imparting education is going to be much less. I have gone to other foreign countries where foreign education providers are already providing education and the cost of that education is much less than they provide in their own country.

Q: What you are saying is while there is no regulation that will require them to set the fee at a particular level, what they should bear in mind is that the cost is less in India and that should be reflected in whatever fee they charge?

A: Absolutely.

Q: But they are free to choose the fee?

A: Absolutely, because it depends on what course they are doing and on the inputs of that course.