BENGALURU, Karnataka Governor Thawarchand Gehlot has urged the state government to provide stronger budget support to the higher education department in the upcoming state budget.
Chairing the Conference of Vice-Chancellors of Karnataka State Public Universities – 2026, organized by Lok Bhavan in collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education and Karnataka Higher Education Board on Saturday, the Governor stressed that public universities need structured and sustainable financial support, a press release issued by Lok Bhavan said.
“Universities, which have limited internal revenue sources, need special financial patronage and structured budgetary support,” the statement quoted Gehlot as saying, while appealing to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure that the March 6 state budget is more beneficial for higher education.
The Governor expressed his satisfaction with the Prime Minister’s participation in the conference and expressed confidence that the upcoming budget will prioritize higher education.
He specifically called for filling up long vacancies in institutions such as Karnataka Dr Gangubai Hangal University of Music and Performing Arts, Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, Kannada University, Karnataka Janapada University and Dr BR Ambedkar College of Economics, besides providing adequate financial allocations for their development.
Emphasizing the need to strengthen public universities, Gehlot said the deliberations at the conference reflected Karnataka’s readiness to steer higher education in a new direction.
He also called for increasing admission to government institutions and studying the reasons why students prefer private universities despite high fees.
The governor stressed strict adherence to academic calendars to ensure timely admission, examinations and announcement of results.
Improving coordination between Vice-Chancellors and Registrars, upskilling of teaching staff, curriculum updates in line with current needs and introduction of career-oriented courses were identified as priorities.
Highlighting the development of the campus, he stressed the need to improve quality, cleanliness and green spaces, urging active implementation of initiatives such as “One Tree for Mother”.
He also encouraged universities to promote sports participation to enable students to represent institutions at the regional, state, national and international levels.
On governance and transparency, Gehlot pushed for strict adherence to central and user-generated guidelines within stipulated timelines.
The statement said that it emphasized that institutional credibility depends on resolving internal disputes democratically and maintaining transparency in financial matters.
He added that the advisor must promote harmony among stakeholders to avoid unnecessary inquiries and administrative disturbances.
The governor suggested that universities expand international cooperation for academic and student exchange, enhance national rankings and address faculty shortages and infrastructure gaps.
Utilizing central schemes and corporate social responsibility funds has been suggested as a way to bridge financial constraints with state support.
According to him, universities should prefer Indian traditional dress as uniform during annual convocation ceremonies to promote cultural heritage.
The conference began with the handover of Vande Mataram, Jana Jana Mana and Nada Jethi. Higher Education Minister M C Sudhakar welcomed the participants and outlined the objectives of the conference.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar were among those present on the occasion.
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