Patel said the government must clarify whether it was transferring the responsibility of higher education on private institutions or it was making a joint effort with the private institutions in order to raise the standards of higher education.

He pointed out that the objectives of the bill emphasised the need for setting up of private universities, but the bill was silent on issues, like how much land would be required for a private university, how many buildings would be required, the minimum courses they would have to run, the need for setting up a library and system of evaluation among others.

He suggested that the government must ensure that private universities do not become “educational markets to make profits only”.

Senior Congress MLA Arjun Modhwadia said he was not against more universities to come up in the state. But, only private universities proposed to be set up for students of the privileged class will not serve any purpose. Instead, the government should increase the number of grant-in-aid colleges, and improve their quality education, he said.