Madhyapur Thimi, February 25:

The University Grant Commission (UGC), established 12 years ago, will now be called Higher Education Commission, said commission chairman Dr Kamal Krishna Joshi.

The name is going to be changed as there is a misconception that the commission is an organisation that receives funds from the government and supports only the universities, Dr Joshi said. The new name has been proposed to facilitate the opening of new universities and research.

The commission has already made a written request to the Ministry of Education and Sports for changing its name.