ISI Bill 2026 faces opposition from faculty, MPs over autonomy fears

The Story in Brief

Minister Rao Inderjit Singh introduced the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) Bill, 2026, in Parliament on 3 August, prompting immediate pushback. At a press conference in Delhi on 5 August, faculty members and Opposition MPs warned the Bill would strip ISI of its autonomy, internal democracy, and accountability, turning it into an arm of the central government. They demanded the Bill be referred to a Parliamentary Standing Committee and that wider consultations be held with faculty, students, alumni, and the scientific community.

The proposed law repeals the 1959 ISI Act, restructures the institute’s unique fee-free programmes for traditional courses, and obliges ISI to align its activities with the government’s Viksit Bharat vision. Faculty fear this could end the free-courses-and-stipend regime, making basic programmes inaccessible for meritorious students. The government defends the Bill as a move to unlock growth and end the dominance of a few hundred members in the ISI Society, National Herald reports.