Central Sanskrit Universities Bill

The 2019 Central Sanskrit Universities Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha. It had already been passed by the Lok Sabha in December last year.

Universities covered by the Bill

The 2019 bill seeks to convert 3 Sanskrit institutions (currently deemed to be universities) into Central Sanskrit Universities. These are: Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan in New Delhi, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth in New Delhi and Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth in Tirupati.

Purpose of the Bill

The Central Sanskrit Universities are to be established for the following purposes:

• To promote Sanskrit as a medium for knowledge dissemination and advancement.
• To make special provisions for integrated courses in humanities, sciences and social science
• To enable the preservation and development of the language by training manpower.

 Powers and Functions of the Universities

The Central Sanskrit Universities are to have the following powers and functions:

• It will conduct training programs and prescribe courses.
• It will grant degrees, diplomas, and certificates to students.
• It will provide distance education facilities.
• It will confer ‘autonomous’ status to colleges and institutions.
• It will provide instruction for Sanskrit education.