THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has pointed out serious lapses and delays in the implementation of the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) in Kerala, citing deviation from guidelines, delayed projects, unutilised funds, and poor monitoring mechanisms that undermined the objectives of improving access, equity, and quality in higher education.

RUSA, a centrally sponsored scheme launched in 2013 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, aimed to strengthen state higher education systems through institutional and infrastructural development. The scheme was to be implemented in two phases—RUSA 1.0 (2013–17) and RUSA 2.0 (2018–22).

However, the CAG found that the State amended the Kerala Higher Education Act, 2007, in line with RUSA guidelines only in July 2018, five years after the scheme’s launch. Even then, several provisions remained inconsistent with the central framework.

While the RUSA guidelines stipulated that the Chairman of the State Higher Education Council should be an eminent academic or public intellectual, the amended Act designated the Minister for Higher Education as the Chairperson, diluting the intended autonomy of the body.