Parliamentary panel recommends Institution of National Importance status for Auroville Foundation

New Delhi, Dec 21 (PTI) The Auroville Foundation in Pondicherry should be granted recognition as an Institution of National Importance by the government, a Parliamentary panel has recommended.

"The committee recommends that the government may consider amending the Auroville Foundation Act, 1988 to provide for recognition of Auroville as an Institution of National Importance, keeping in view that UNESCO has already adopted multiple resolutions since 1966 endorsing the project and acknowledging its contribution towards international understanding and the promotion of peace," the panel, headed by Congress MP Digvijaya Singh, said in its report tabled in Parliament last week.

An Institute of National Importance (INI) in India is a premier higher education body, declared so by an Act of Parliament, crucial for developing skilled professionals and driving national growth in key sectors like engineering (IITs, NITs), medicine (AIIMS), and management (IIMs).

The report said that the Auroville Foundation receives partial funding from the Central Government in the form of annual grants, as stipulated by the Auroville Foundation Act, 1988. These grants are provided by the Ministry of Education to support the establishment, maintenance, and development of Auroville, the international cultural township.

"The foundation also generates its own income, but government grants still remain a significant source of funding for its operations and projects. The Committee feels that instead of an annual grant, the foundation should be granted a sufficient amount to sustain itself in future," the report said.

Noting that the Ministry of External Affairs has set up a special procedure for visa disbursal to Auroville residents, the panel suggested that the Foundation should continue to keep the five-year visa as the norm for all residents.

"It is a necessary safeguard to preserve the international character of the community. The committee emphasises that the Auroville Foundation's role in the visa process must be speedy and independent of any considerations," it added. PTI GJS HIG