Lakshadweep administration mulls acquiring Bitra island for defence purposes
Kochi, Jul 19 (PTI): The Lakshadweep administration is considering the acquisition of Bitra, one of the inhabited islands in the archipelago, for defence purposes.
The move invited a strong protest from Lakshadweep MP Hamdullah Sayeed, who extended complete support to the local residents of the island and promised them to explore political and legal avenues to resist it.
A recent government notification outlined this proposal for the Department of Revenue to take over the entire land area of Bitra island.
The intent is to transfer it to relevant defense and strategic agencies of the Centre.
The notification, issued last week, clarified that the initiative is driven by the strategic location of the island, its national security relevance, and the inherent logistical and administrative challenges posed by the civilian habitation.
The territorial administration would take over the island as per the relevant provisions of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resetlement Act, 2013 for which Social Impact Assessment study has to be undertaken for the affected area.
District Collector Shivam Chandra, in the order, said all stakeholders, including grama sabhas, would be consulted as part of the Social Impact Assessment initiatives.
The survey of the proposed area under the acquisition would be completed within two months from the date of the publication of the notification on July 11, it added.
Meanwhile, Lakshadweep MP Hamdullah Sayeed has stood up firm against the move to take over Bitra island by the UT administration and said the real objective behind the move is to displace the indigenous population.
In a statement issued by his office, the MP said Bitra is the smallest inhabited island in the UT and he would strongly protest against the administration's attempt to acquire it under the pretext of defense requirements.
He also demanded to withdraw the decision immediately.
Sayeed pointed out that the land required for defense purposes has already been acquired by the government in several islands.
Targeting Bitra, which has had a permanent population for decades, without considering any of these alternatives, is completely unacceptable, he said.
He further criticised the administration for initiating such actions without any consultation with the indigenous residents, especially at a time when there are no functioning of local panchayat in the islands.
He stated that this kind of unilateral action undermines the democratic system and violates the constitutional rights guaranteed to citizens.
The MP, in the statement, assured that he would stand with the people of Bitra and would explore all political and legal avenues to resist the move.
He also stated that he would raise the issue in the upcoming Parliament session, urging the central government to intervene immediately.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
_vb_22.jpeg)
