Port Louis —  What are the criticisms made against the Eastern Institute for Integrated Learning in Management University (EIILM)?

The PNQ last week was focused on the creation of the EIILM. The opposition insisted that this university is ope-rating illegally in Mauritius. Members of the opposition insisted that the opening of this university is not in conformity with the Indian authorities and the regulations of the Tertiary Education Commission.

 What do these regulations say, according to the opposition?

According to the TEC regulations, there must be a period of one year between the granting of an authorisation to a university to operate and its effective opening. But the EIILM has opened six months after receiving the authorisation. Opposition says that the EIILM should have obtained the authorisation of the University Grants Commission (UGC) - the national regulating body in India - before the Eastern University - recognised only in Sikkim - opened a branch in Mauritius.

 What is the response of the Jeetah family, owner of the university?

Sunil Jeetah, the chief executive of the EIILM, says everything has been done legally. The management explained that it has obtained all necessary authorisation from the TEC before opening and that there was nothing that forced them to wait one year. With regards to the UGC authorisation, the law of the Sikkim government allows a university to open offshore without any authorisation from the UGC.