New Delhi, November 12 A majority of Nepali students who are studying in various Indian universities said that they were compelled to study in India due to unfavourable education scenario in the country. Many of them said Nepali universities did not offer options for selecting courses of their choice and for some courses there are limited seats, which compelled them to opt for Indian universities. A glaring example is a student named Arun Dube of Birgunj who chose to pursue higher education in India. Dube, who is pursuing an MBA at Sharda University, Noida, said, “Hundreds of Nepali students are pursuing higher education degrees at Sharda University, and other universities also have a high number of Nepali students.” Sharda University officials said more than 500 Nepali students are currently pursuing higher education in different subjects at the university. Similarly, Bikesh Shah of Birgunj, who is currently studying Mechanical Engineering in the same university, said that had the government provided ample seats for such degrees, he would have pursued his degree in Nepal itself. “As the government often fails to provide enough seats for students wanting to pursue higher education, they are forced to go abroad and study the same subject at a higher cost,” said Shah. In fact, it is the common voice of majority of Nepali students who are pursuing higher education in different Indian universities that the education system in Nepal is poor, which is why the number of Nepali students going abroad for studies is rising every year. The Himalayan Times had spoken to the aforementioned Nepali students during the FICCI Higher Education Summit and Exhibition organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry from November 9 to 11. Prakash Pandey, president of Educational Consultancies Association of Nepal, admits that Nepali students have been prioritising foreign degrees over domestic ones. “Nepal basically lacks proper education policies. As a result, Nepali students have been investing a huge sum of money in higher education abroad,” he said. According to Pandey, the government should organise such education fairs in the country, and also diversify the education sector to attract foreign students to Nepal. Praveen Kumar Regmi, managing director of Post-modern Educational Consultancy, opines that a significant number of Nepali students are choosing foreign degrees in recent times.