The HRD ministry will soon seek Union Cabinet's approval to set up a statutory body to recognize and regulate all distance education and all online courses in the country.

The body will also monitor courses being provided by foreign education providers through the Internet. The ministry has prepared a draft law to provide legal backing to the Distance Education Council (DEC), at present a body under Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).

Several universities have objected to DEC being under IGNOU, saying that how can one university regulate another university. Even a Parliamentary standing committee had recommended that DEC should be an independent regulatory body like University Grants Commission or the All India Council for Technical Education. DEC would be an apex body for obtaining approval for all forms of distance education modes, a ministry official said.

The proposed law is based on the recommendations of a committee appointed by the ministry last year. The committee had felt that regulation of online and distance education is imperative as in the next five years admissions in online courses will double with increase in internet connectivity.