National Institutes of Design (NID) Act: Bill introduced in Lok Sabha for amendment

The government Tuesday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to amend National Institutes of Design (NID) Act, 2014, to include four new such centers within the ambit of the law and declare them as institutions of national importance.

The four new NIDs which will be included are in Amaravati, Bhopal, Jorhat, and Kurukshetra.

According to the statement of objects and reasons of the bill, these institutes do not have the authority to grant a degree, diploma, and other academic distinctions.

"Therefore, a need has been felt to give them statutory status so as to ensure the maintenance of similar standards and quality of education in all areas or disciplines relating to design, as the NID, Ahmedabad," it said.

It is proposed to declare these institutes as institutions of national importance and to confer power to them to grant a degree, diploma, and other academic distinctions.

Establishing new NIDs as institutions of national Importance in different regions will help produce skilled manpower.

It would also help create job opportunities, both direct and indirect, by providing sustainable design interventions for crafts, handloom, rural technology, small, medium and large scale enterprises; and outreach programmes for capacity, capability and institution building.

An Institute of National Importance in India is defined as one which serves as a pivotal player in developing highly skilled personnel within the specified region of the country or state.

Only a chosen few institutes make it to this coveted list and are usually supported by the government or even any other international institutes to develop centers of excellence in research, academics, and other such elite schools of education.

(With inputs from agencies.)