Welcoming the Government's decision to allow establishment of private universities in the State, ICFAI (Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India) has called for a proper mechanism that ensures meaningful regulation on both academic and administrative issues.

The State has announced that it would introduce a Bill in the ensuing Budget session, facilitating establishment of universities in the private sector.

`Huge potential'

Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, Prof. V Panduranga Rao, Vice-Chancellor of ICFAI University, felt that there was a huge potential in the segment of higher education. While stating that this was possible with participation from private players, the Vice-Chancellor said that public and private sector universities could co-exist.

Referring to the examples of developed nations, he said there were 2,466 universities in the US with just one-fourth of India's population. While the number for China was 2,000, India was home to 350 universities.

The Vice-Chancellor felt that the entry of private universities would make reservations redundant, as there would be enough seats available for all.