Govt IDs for foreign students

The Department of Higher Education in collaboration with the Ministry of Home Affairs has developed an ‘EducationIndia’ portal, which is ready to use and will be made mandatory from the academic year 2023-24 for international students planning to take admission in Indian higher education institutions.

There are approx. The country’s 1,700 higher education institutions that want to take foreign students have to register on the government portal.

The National Medical Commission (NMC), the medical education regulator, has asked all medical colleges to register on the portal soon.

Last month, the government conducted inter-ministerial consultations to launch the process. “An inter-ministerial meeting was held under the chairmanship of the Secretary (Higher Education) on 7 February where all the Ministries/Departments that run Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), including the Reserve Bank of India, participated to discuss the modalities for implementing the Education India Portal. Now, all international students who aim to pursue higher education in India have to register on this portal,” read the communication issued by the NMC.

“Also, the HIEs have to register on this portal and upload the offers of admission issued to the students on this portal. After registering on the portal, students will get a unique ID which can be used for all purposes including issuing student visa post to verify the student’s identity on this portal. This will apply to all students seeking student visas irrespective of the duration of the course,” it said.

Apart from this, Indian Council of Cultural Relations will also use this portal and sponsor scholarships only through it.

Higher education institutions offering courses for international students will regularly update student details.

There was no response to queries sent to the Health Ministry spokesperson.