PANAJI
The Goa Legislative Assembly on Thursday pushed through the passage of seven government-sponsored legislations in quick succession, despite Opposition MLAs raising queries and pointing out defects in some of them. Among the bills cleared was the one granting private university status to the Goa Institute of Management (GIM), the State’s premier B-school.
Leader of the Opposition Yuri Alemao voiced strong reservations over the move, warning that GIM could become “an authority unto itself” once elevated to private university status, leaving the government with little jurisdiction to regulate it. He also highlighted the institute’s steep fee structure, arguing that it was already unaffordable for most Goan families. Alemao expressed fears that the new status could pave the way for further fee hikes, making postgraduate management education at the institute inaccessible to local students.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant sought to calm these concerns, assuring the House that GIM would be required to maintain parity with other leading B-schools across the country in terms of fee structures.
He explained that the decision was necessitated by the framework of the National Education Policy (NEP), which mandates that stand-alone institutions be granted private university status. “The policy requires all such institutions to be recognised as private universities,” Sawant said, adding that the move would strengthen Goa’s higher education ecosystem.
Apart from the GIM legislation, the Assembly also passed six other bills:
The Goa Value Added Tax (Amendment) Bill
The Goa School Education (Amendment) Bill
The Goa Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing (Promotion and Facilitation) (Amendment) Bill
The Goa Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Bill
The Goa Mundkars (Protection from Eviction) (Amendment) Bill
The Opposition pressed for greater scrutiny of the bills at each of their passing stage debates, but the government pushed them through with its majority, underscoring its intent to fast-track reforms across education, taxation, agriculture, and local governance.
With the passage of these legislations, the Sawant government has signalled its determination to align State laws with national policy frameworks while simultaneously addressing administrative gaps. However, concerns over affordability and regulatory oversight of GIM remain unresolved, setting the stage for possible further debate in the months ahead.
