Mushrooming coaching centres: Parliamentary panel to examine trend

A parliamentary committee has chosen to examine the "proliferation" of coaching centers to assist students in competitive exams and the social difficulties resulting from it in light of the rise in stress-related student suicides. The Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth, and Sports will also look at how developing technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) affect education and students.

The standing committee has also decided to examine PM Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRI) in 2025–2026, according to a recent Lok Sabha bulletin.

According to the bulletin, the panel will examine the growth of coaching centers to assist students in competitive exams, the social problems that result from it, and the laws that are now in place. 
The "coaching capital of India," Kota, Rajasthan, has seen multiple examples of students enrolled in coaching institutes taking their own lives in recent years as a result of academic pressure.
A nine-person panel was established earlier this year by the Ministry of Education to look into coaching and the rise of "dummy schools" in addition to the efficiency and equity of entrance exams.

In the framework of the educational system, the panel is investigating the efficiency and equity of competitive entrance exams as well as their impact on the expansion of the coaching sector. 
The legislative panel will also review the "current practices and policies" pertaining to school shutdown throughout the year.
The committee will also assess the National Council of Educational Research and Training's (NCERT) performance and operations, as well as initiatives to advance the education of linguistic and religious minorities, according to the Lok Sabha Secretariat. 

Details regarding the Education Ministry's "efforts" to establish a Higher Education Council of India (HECI) will also be requested by the panel.

The Winter session of Parliament, which is scheduled to start on December 1, is scheduled to introduce a bill to establish a higher education regulator that will take the place of organizations like the UGC.

The University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) are intended to be replaced by the HECI, which was included in the new National Education Policy.

The NCTE is the regulating authority for teacher education, the AICTE is in charge of technical education, and the UGC is in charge of non-technical higher education.

Additionally, research on Indological academic traditions and their influence on the current educational system will be reviewed by the legislative panel.