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Almost a decade and a half after its inception, Children’s University – one of the specialized universities established by then Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2009 in Gandhinagar – will cease to be an academic institution and, instead, will become a research institute.
Since the 2023-24 academic session, the university, which has a faculty of about 45 teaching members and 70 non-teaching members, has stopped accepting any new admissions. Emphasizing the development, Vice-Chancellor Harshad Patel told The Indian Express, “It has been decided to focus entirely on research in child development. This is the main aim of the university. Keeping this in mind, from this academic session onwards, no admissions will be made because This will only function as a research institution.”
In the 2022-23 academic year, around 150 students were admitted under its seven departments – Education, Gujarati, Home Science, Social Work, Prenatal Care and Education, Psychology and Sanskrit as part of its Postgraduate and Diploma programmes. Of the 150 students, approximately 50 percent will complete their programs this year and the rest will graduate next year.
The highest number—about 30 per person—was accepted under the graduate degree program in Home Science and Social Work. Operating since 2012 in four centers – the Center for Research, Training, Extension and Education – the university can enroll an average of 100 students each year. In April 2022, 101 students were awarded degrees during the convocation ceremony.
The university offers Tapovan Garbh Sanskar Kendra and Shishu Paramarshan Kendra, both of which are established under its own counseling centre. While Garbh Samskar Kendra aims to “get the best and desired child”, Shishu Paramarshan Kendra gives guidelines for bringing up children in a good manner.
“This aim includes the activity related to Garbhadhna Samskar to embody the best offspring and fulfills the dream of preparing a total human being for society… It can be claimed to be divine, for no other university in the contemporary world ever aims to cover the broad cycle of development that begins from the unborn child to 18-year-olds for teenagers,” Harshad Shah, Senior Vice-Chancellor who took over in 2012, stated in the university’s concept note.
The unprecedented move to transform it into a research institute comes at a time when university authorities have planned its expansion and new courses.
According to the minutes of the General Council meeting held in October 2022, a decision was made to design new courses in accordance with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and to discontinue those programs in which there was less strength.
For example, in 2022-23 only three students were accepted into a graduate degree program in education. Moreover, the council also passed a decision to “transform the Children’s University into the category of MERU – University of Interdisciplinary Research and Education” within the framework of NEP 2020. However, experts say that the move to convert it into a research institute is a decision towards “revival” and “return to the idea original” to create the university.
After approval by the Council of Ministers, the University Bill was submitted to the Legislative Assembly on 28 July 2009 by the then Education Minister Ramanlal Vora and passed. The bill, after receiving approval from the Governor on July 31, 2009, received final recognition as the Children’s University Act, 2009.
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