(This column first appeared in Economic Times on February 2, 2022)
- The Budget has opened a new route for foreign universities to set up campuses in India — through GIFT IFSC (international financial services centre) in Gujarat — where they will not be encumbered by domestic regulations. Finance minister Sitharaman said that worldclass foreign universities and institutions will be allowed to operate in the GIFT City “free from domestic regulations”. They will be permitted to offer courses in financial management, fintech, science, technology, engineering and mathematics, as per the announcement in the Budget for 2022-23 presented on Tuesday. She indicated that the only regulations applicable will be those of the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), designed to facilitate availability of high-end human resources for financial services and technology…