National Project Implementation Unit (NPIU)

The existing NPIU will be restructured to carry out its functions through 6 functional Units and will be headed by the Central Project Advisor (CPA):

  • Institutional DevelopmentUnit

  • PG Education and R&D&I Unit

  • Faculty Development Unit

  • Financial Management Unit

  • Procurement Management Unit

  • Monitoring and Evaluation Unit

These Units may be modified by the CPA from time to time. The Institutional Development, PG Education and R&D&I and Faculty Development Units will be headed by senior academicians (in the rank of Professor/Associate Professor), and experienced professionals will head the Procurement, Finance and M&E Units. Each Unit head will be assisted by adequate number of suitable support staff. The Project will finance the salary cost of the full‐time key and support staff in the NPIU and MHRD, fee to Consultants, salaries of contractual support staff, expenditure on rent and refurbishment of hired offices, goods, minor works, assessment, surveys, institutional audits, studies, reviews, mentoring, study tours and various training workshops, travel, staff welfare and other operating costs of the NPlU and MHRD.

Role of the Central Project Advisor: The CPA will be suitably empowered, financially and administratively to perform the functions listed below:

  • Disseminating to States and CFIs, through its website information, on the Project design, eligibility and selection criteria for States and Institutions and the associated processes,

  • Preparing Annual Work Plans, including Annual Budgets and detailed semi‐Annual Plans and Budget,

  • Carrying out orientation of the NECs to their ToRs for their concerned evaluations,

  • Organizing receipt of proposals for selection from States and UTs, checking completeness of proposals, submitting results of scrutiny to the National Project Directorate for consideration of the National Steering Committee (NSC) and communicating the decisions of the NSC to the States along with recommendations for improvement of proposals, as may be required,

  • Organizing receipt of separate eligibility and Institutional Development Proposals (IDPs) from Institutions for Sub‐components 1.1 and 1.2 and proposals for Sub‐component 1.2.1,

  • Organizing receipt, processing and evaluation of Proposals for Innovation Fund, communicating recommendations for improvement of proposals as suggested by NEC , if any, and obtaining approval for funding from the NSC,

  • Arranging training for the NPIU staff,

  • Developing proposals for local technical assistance for activities undertaken at the National level and with approval from the NPD and facilitating/operationalizing the same,

  • Organizing meetings of Working Groups, NECs, Mentors, Performance Auditors, and such other Committees/Groups of Experts as are constituted from time to time,

  • Building capacity of the States and UTs and Institutions for implementation of Equity Assurance Plan (EAP), Environment Management Framework (EMF) and Disclosure Management Framework (DMF) requirements,

  • Liaising with the SPFUs to discuss Project implementation progress to identify and solve emerging problems,

  • Organizing Professional Development Programmes for Engineering Education policy planners, administrators and implementers (from the MHRD, the State Directorates, the NPIU, the SPFUs, etc.),

Role of the NPIU’s Functional Units:

  • Organizing Joint Review Missions, Mid‐term and Implementation Completion Missions and other Supervision and Implementation Support Missions, as required, and

  • Carrying out other related tasks as may be requested by the NPD and the National Project Directorate.

Institutional Development Unit in the NPIU: Under the guidance of the CPA, this Unit will:

  • Organize training workshops and technical assistance for the SPFUs of new States on preparation of eligibility proposals and IDPs, based on SWOT analysis, for seeking funds under Sub‐component‐1.1,

  • Scrutinize Eligibility of the short listed proposals for this Sub‐component as received from States and UTs for completeness, validation of State/UT recommendations, eligibility parameters, and prepare reports on the same for consideration of the NSC,

  • Scrutiny followed by evaluation of Institutional Development Proposals for Sub‐ component 1.1 of all short listed Institutions (for those that have State sponsorship) through NEC, submit recommendations of NEC to the NSC for selections and communicate decisions of the NSC to the States, UTs and CFIs along with recommendations for improvement of proposals, as may be required,

  • Review funding requirements from Institutions and monitor fund utilization for Sub‐ component1.1,

  • Develop guidelines for capacity building of BoGs and develop appropriate orientation programme and identify resource persons in consultation with the SPFUs,

  • Identify a set of mentors for CFIs,

  • Approve (based on their experience and capability) mentors for State sponsored institutions,

  • Empanel performance and data auditors for all project institutions,

  • Develop clear TORs, guidelines and methodologies for mentors and, performance and data auditors,

  • Promote organization of separate workshops by States and select Institutions for sharing the good academic and governance practices and innovations,

  • Develop and oversee procedures for effective mentoring, performance audits and data audits of all project institutions30, and

  • Obtain reports from mentors and auditors; review these for satisfactory progress in implementation of the proposed activities and achievement of targets.

  • PG Education and R&D&I Unit in the NPIU: Under the guidance of the CPA, this Unit, in respect of Proposals for Scaling‐up PG Education and Research & Development and Innovation under sub‐component 1.2 will:

    • Scrutinize proposals of the short listed proposals for this Sub‐component as received from States and UTs for completeness and validation of State/UT recommendations, and prepare reports on the same for consideration of evaluation by NEC,

    • Organize meetings of the NEC for in‐depth review of the IDPs for this Sub‐component,

    • Submit NEC recommendations for selection and fund allocation to the NSC, and communicate the decision of the NSC to the States/UTs and the Institutions, and

    • Monitor fund utilization and implementation progress for the Sub‐component 1.2.