The principal aim of her visit, Gillard stressed, was to reinforce Australia's image as 'a culturally diverse, welcoming and safe country for Indian students, business people and other visitors'.

'After the legislation comes to effect, (we will ensure that) any institution providing education will be offering only quality education. The information provided by educational agencies should also be accurate,' she said, adding a hotline had already been set up for aggrieved students.

The Australian government is presently conducting an audit of its rapidly burgeoning vocational sector, one of the biggest education providers for Indian students but which is also widely believed to be misused for gaining permanent residency status.

Policymakers and educationists believe that the over 1,000 vocational institutes in the country, of which 400 alone are in Victoria state, have become moneymaking machines, and many of them compromise on the quality of education by hiring agents who are given hefty commissions.

Also in place, Gillard insisted, was a 'visible police patrol', especially in places from where racial attacks have been reported in the remote suburbs of major cities like Melbourne and Sydney. She maintained her government would ensure that victims of racist attacks either get a seat in a different college or are refunded the entire college fee.

'As a national government we are working with state governments to provide quality education to all Indian students. After my visit here, there will be a roundtable with foreign students on difficulties faced by them,' she added.

The highlight of her trip will be the launch of the Australia-India Institute, an initiative expected to build better understanding between people of the two countries.

Australia's education industry has boomed in recent years to become the country's third largest export earner after coal and iron ore, generating about $12 billion in revenue in 2008.