MUTA opposes recent amendment to Private Universities Act, 2019

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

The members of the Madurai Kamaraj, Manonmaniam Sundaranar, Mother Teresa, Alagappa, Tamil Nadu Teachers’ Education and Anna University Teachers’ Association (MUTA) have objected to the recent amendments to Tamil Nadu Private Universities Act, 2026, passed in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly recently.

Under the original Tamil Nadu Private Universities Act enacted in 2019, institutions were required to possess a minimum of 100 acres of land and maintain a permanent fixed deposit endowment of ₹50 crore.

According to A.T. Senthamarai Kannan, general secretary of MUTA, the State government has successfully passed the amendment in the Assembly following an earlier ordinance in October 2025 that met with an intense public backlash.

“The minimum land requirement is now slashed to 12 acres within the Greater Chennai Corporation limits, 18 acres in other corporations and municipalities, and 25 acres in rural areas. Additionally, the mandatory permanent endowment fund has been halved from ₹50 crore to ₹25 crore,” he added.

He argued that while State-run universities—which uphold social justice and reservation policies while providing affordable education—struggle with chronic underfunding, the government is rolling out the red carpet for private players.

Concerns have also been raised that commercialised higher education, coupled with rising student dropouts due to exorbitant fee structures in private and self-financing institutions, will hurt marginalised youth, he observed.

He warned that proliferating private campuses without robust regulatory guardrails could lead to exploitative labour conditions and job market vulnerabilities for graduates.

Mr. Senthamarai Kannan urged the Tamil Nadu government to reconsider the legislative amendment.

MUTA demanded that the State instead focus its resources on strengthening State-funded institutions to safeguard educational equity and the reservation system.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.