Bagging deemed university status, FTII to now award degrees

Pune: Students graduating from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) will now receive degree certificates from ‘FTII University', after the Union education ministry granted the institute deemed university status on April 22.
FTII director Dhiraj Singh told TOI that the awarding of degrees and opportunity for research are immediate benefits. "This development also paves the way for better innovation and integration with academics," said Singh, adding, "The university status allows the institute to implement provisions of the New Education Policy (NEP), providing a lot of flexibility and scope for expansion."
Alongside FTII, the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata has also been granted university status. Both institutes will now participate in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) and integrate with the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC).
The education ministry, in its announcement regarding the grant of university status to FTII, said the status was granted under section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956.
"Both institutes will launch doctoral, research, and innovative academic programmes and will adhere to UGC norms and NEP 2020 guidelines," said the statement. The new status empowers both institutes to award degrees rather than just diplomas and also offer doctoral programmes.
Singh further said, "Deemed to be university status is a major milestone in the glorious journey of FTII. This recognition under the distinct category allows FTII to retain its unique identity while embracing the benefits of being a world-class university."
FTII was set up by Govt of India in 1960, in the premises of the erstwhile Prabhat Studios in Pune. Formerly known as the ‘Film Institute of India', in 1971 its name was changed to became known as the ‘Film and Television Institute of India'. It soon started in-service training programmes for Doordarshan, India's public broadcaster. The television training wing, earlier functioning in New Delhi, shifted to Pune in 1974. Thereafter, the institute became fully aided by the Union ministry of information and broadcasting. In 2017, the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) granted equivalence to six PG diploma programmes of the institute with a master's degree.
Meanwhile, SRFTI in Kolkata, named after legendary auteur Satyajit Ray, was the second national centre of cinema education established in 1995 by GOI as an autonomous academic institution under the I&B ministry.
(With inputs from PTI)