The University of Delhi (DU) has set up a non-profit company to promote innovation and encourage new start-ups, Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh has said. Section-8, Companies are generally those which are established for charitable purposes and prohibit the payment of any dividend to its members as per the Companies Act, 2013. Meanwhile, another Section 8 firm is in the final stages to generate funds for the company.
In its loan proposal to the Ministry of Education, the university has stated that it has been receiving very limited allocation for building capital assets for the past three to five years and has been unable to purchase laboratory equipment. The university is banking on alumni of business firms and corporate social responsibility activities for funding. It has also sought a loan of Rs. 1,000 crores from the Higher Education Grants Agency for infrastructure development and creation of capital or assets.
We are hoping that the alumni will contribute and the CSR activities of the companies will help in fund generation, – he said. On HEFA loan, VC Y Singh said it is in process and is expected to be cleared soon. It also said that many of its buildings are in dilapidated condition. We are waiting for the loan from Higher Education Financing Agency.
Also, we hope that these two companies will help generate funds. In March, DU’s executive council had approved a demand for loans of over Rs 1,000 crore. As per the HEFA funding pattern, DU will have to repay the loan in 20 half-yearly installments over 10 years.
It will solicit funds from alumni and companies for their CSR activities. It will be an independent company of DU (University of Delhi) and will have a professional CEO. The money will be used for the development of the university, – he said.
We have established a company to encourage new start-ups and innovation in the university and we are looking for its CEO. The company will work on incubators and promote innovation.
