UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

The National Council for Teacher Education is the statutory body responsible for regulating teacher education programmes in India. Any institution wishing to start a B.Ed course must obtain recognition from NCTE to ensure that prescribed norms regarding curriculum, infrastructure, and faculty are met. The stem refers exactly to recognition needed for starting a B.Ed programme, for which NCTE is the competent authority. Therefore, Option A is correct.

Option A:
NCTE issues regulations specifying minimum standards and periodically publishes lists of recognised teacher education institutions. This ensures that teacher preparation meets quality benchmarks necessary for school education systems. These functions align precisely with the situation described in the question.

Option B:
The University Grants Commission oversees universities in general but does not directly grant recognition for individual B.Ed programmes, which is a specialised teacher education domain. Hence, Option B does not adequately answer the stem.

Option C:
AICTE regulates technical and management education and has no mandate over teacher education programmes such as B.Ed. Therefore, Option C is clearly inappropriate in this context.

Option D:
The National Testing Agency conducts entrance examinations but does not regulate or recognise degree programmes. It is unrelated to the recognition of B.Ed courses, making Option D incorrect.

Statements A and B correctly reflect the constitutional scheme for higher education. Education, including higher education, appears in the Concurrent List after the 42nd Amendment, so both the Union and States have roles, which makes statement A correct. Entry 66 of the Union List gives the Union exclusive power for coordination and determination of standards in higher education, so statement B is also correct. Statement C is incorrect because central universities are established by Acts of Parliament, not solely by State Governments. Statement D is incorrect because private universities can be established under specific State Acts subject to regulatory norms.

Option A:
Option A is correct because it includes both statements A and B, which accurately describe the shared and exclusive constitutional responsibilities in higher education. It excludes C, which wrongly attributes central universities to States alone, and D, which wrongly denies the possibility of private universities. The combination therefore matches the true statements only.

Option B:
Option B is incorrect because, although it includes A and B which are true, it also includes C which is false. Central universities are set up by Parliament on behalf of the Union Government, not exclusively by States. Including a wrong statement makes the whole combination incorrect.

Option C:
Option C is incorrect because it excludes statement A, which is true about education being in the Concurrent List, and includes statement C, which is false about central universities. Even though it includes B, the presence of a false statement invalidates the option.

Option D:
Option D is incorrect because it treats all four statements A, B, C and D as correct. While A and B are true, C and D are clearly false. Since a correct combination must exclude false statements, this option cannot be the right answer.