Kathmandu, September 25
A bill to establish a National Defence University under the Ministry of Defence has been registered in the House of Representatives.
The National Defence University Bill, originally drafted when KP Sharma Oli was prime minister, was registered in Parliament on September 21.
The bill has drawn attention because, unlike most legislation concerning the establishment of universities, it has been introduced by the Ministry of Defence rather than the Ministry of Education.
People familiar with the process say disagreement over whether the proposed university should fall under the Education Ministry or the Defence Ministry delayed the bill’s registration.
“There was no disagreement over the need for a defence university. But while discussions were underway over whether it should be led by the Ministry of Education or the Ministry of Defence, Parliament was dissolved,” said Girirajmani Pokharel, who was education minister when the bill was being drafted.
Under the proposed legislation, the defence minister will serve as co-chancellor of the National Defence University.
The bill also proposes a recommendation committee chaired by the chief of the Nepali Army to recommend candidates for the positions of vice-chancellor and registrar.
The committee would include members nominated by the chancellor from the Academic Council, while the director general of military training of the Nepali Army would serve as its member-secretary.
Prime Minister and Defence Minister Balendra Shah has said the National Defence University is being proposed with the objective of producing skilled and responsible human resources through higher-level study, teaching and research in national security, defence, international relations and strategic affairs.
“Establishing a specialised academic centre within the country to provide higher education and training to military and civilian officials, in order to address geopolitical sensitivities and changing security challenges, is the main reason for establishing and operating this university,” Shah states in the bill.
While there appears to be little disagreement over the need for a defence university, there are differing views over what kind of institution it should be — primarily military in character or primarily academic.
Educationist Dr Bidya Nath Koirala says the first priority should be to clearly define the purpose of the university.
“A university performs three functions — teaching, research and service to society. We need to be clear about what kind of university we are trying to establish,” Koirala said. “The main debate is whether to make the National Defence University academic in nature or military-oriented.”
Although the bill has only recently reached Parliament, the process of establishing a National Defence University dates back several years.
The government issued the National Defence University Infrastructure Development Committee Formation Order in 2019. In accordance with the order, a committee was formed under the leadership of retired Lieutenant General Balananda Sharma.
Former lawmaker and security expert Deepak Prakash Bhatta, who has been involved in efforts to establish the National Defence University from the beginning, says such an institution is essential.
“It should become an institution for professional security and defence officers, as well as civilians who are interested in the field and capable of contributing and conducting research,” Bhatta said. “Senior officers should not have to travel to other countries for education and training.”
During Girirajmani Pokharel’s tenure as education minister, proposals were also put forward to establish Madan Bhandari University, Yogmaya Ayurveda University, Nepal Open University, National Defence University and Tourism University.
The proposals for the latter two institutions, however, failed to move forward after it was proposed that they be placed under the respective ministries of Defence and Tourism.
The Ministry of Education is also regarded as the ministry responsible for human resource development. Proposals concerning the technical aspects of universities are sent to the University Grants Commission for consultation.
Pokharel, the former education minister, argues that allowing individual ministries to establish separate universities is not appropriate as a matter of policy.
“It is not right, in terms of policy, for other ministries to establish separate universities. If every ministry is going to open its own university, then why do we need a Ministry of Education?” he said.
Pokharel maintains that the Cabinet should determine how much human resources are required in different sectors and that the establishment and development of universities should be carried out through the Ministry of Education.
Former Tribhuvan University Vice-Chancellor Kedar Bhakta Mathema, meanwhile, says the government should not rush to establish universities without first considering whether the necessary resources are available.
“It is not that a university should never be established if the resources can be arranged,” Mathema said. “But if a college, academy or institute can provide the degrees we want to teach, then there is no need to establish a university.”
Officials involved in the establishment of the National Defence University say the idea initially emerged around the concept of a National Defence College (NDC).
The Nepali Army has been sending officers abroad for defence-related training.
The bill itself cites Sri Lanka as an example, where a defence academy exists. Sri Lanka enacted the Sir John Kotelawala Defence Academy Act in 1981.
The bill registered in Parliament also cites Pakistan’s National Defence University Act, 2011, as another example.
However, Bhatta, a former lawmaker who holds a doctorate on civil-military relations, says Pakistan should not be used as a model.
“There was no need to cite Pakistan as an example. I do not think it is necessary to convince society by presenting such an example,” he said.
Bhatta has suggested that the proposed university should have more than one co-chair, citing the example of Shaheed Dasharath Chand Health Sciences University, where the education and health ministers serve as co-chairs.
He said the education minister should serve as a co-chair alongside the defence minister, while the health minister’s role could be represented in the university’s council or senate.
Former defence minister Bhimsen Das Pradhan, however, says Nepal needs its own university to produce human resources capable of conducting study and research on national security and strategic affairs.
“There are defence universities in various countries around the world. There should be nothing objectionable about establishing one in our country,” Pradhan said.
Retired Lieutenant General Balananda Sharma, Professor Dr Yubraj Sangroula and Brigadier General Bishnu Raut were involved in drafting the bill.
Sangroula says some provisions of the proposed university differ from those of other universities because of the institution’s specialised nature, including the provision for the defence minister to serve as co-chair.
“This is a university primarily for security professionals rather than fresh students,” Sangroula said. “In particular, it is intended for the education and training of military professionals.”
