Parliament's nod to Nalanda University Bill

A bill seeking to revive the ancient seat of learning at Nalanda in Bihar by establishing an international university there was passed by the Lok Sabha today.

The Nalanda University Bill, 2010, already approved by the Rajya Sabha, would enable the government to set up a central university in Nalanda, an ancient seat of Buddhist learning, to attract bright and dedicated students and teachers from across south and south east Asia.

Minister of state for external affairs Preneet Kaur, in her reply to the debate on the bill, said her ministry had taken upon itself to establish the university because it was an international effort from the East Asian Summit comprising of 15 countries.

Kaur said the centre would provide land for the university, which would come up through voluntary funding from the East Asian Summit members.

The minister informed the House that Singapore had recently promised 4-5 million for the Nalanda university's library through private donations from that country.

She said the bill provided only a framework and structure for the university and that further constitution of the university and its rules and regulations would be done later.

She also said that the university would in the beginning have six schools for different studies, but the Board of governors had envisaged opening another school for information technology.

"The number of schools can always be expanded later and there is an enabling clause for it. This bill is only to fulfil an international obligation," she added.

The University aims to contribute to the promotion of regional peace and vision by bringing together the future leaders of East Asia who by relating to their past could enhance their understanding of each other's perspectives and share that understanding globally.

The bill said that the university would also seek to understand Buddha's teachings in the contemporary context and enhance research for greater interaction between Asian countries.

The Nalanda Mentor Group, chaired by Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, will function as the interim governing board for one year or till the constitution of the Governing Board, whichever is earlier. Singapore's foreign minister George Yeo is also a member of the Mentor Group.

The university will collaborate with other old universities, including the Al-Azhar University of Egypt, Oxford and Cambridge Universities in Britain and Harvard University in the US. It would also collaborate with China.