Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the second Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samagam on the third anniversary of the introduction of the National Education Policy on July 29.
The event will be organised at ITPO, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati and the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Guwahati, held a joint press conference on the implementation of NEP 2020 in Guwahati on July 24.
PM Modi will inaugurate the second Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samagam, which coincides with the 3rd anniversary of NEP 2020, on July 29 at ITPO, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.
PM Modi will also launch various initiatives on the occasion, at the event being organised by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
The Samagam will provide a platform for experts of schools, higher educational institutions, and skilling institutions to discuss, deliberate and share insights, strategies, success stories and best practices in implementing the NEP 2020, the officials said.
Speaking about the implementation of NEP 2020, Professor Gautam Barua, Director of IIIT Guwahati, said, “The vision and provisions of the National Education Policy are so vast and holistic that all the provisions of the policy can be expected to be fully operationalised by 2040.”
Dr Ferdous A Barbhuiya, Associate Dean (Administration) at IIIT Guwahati, shared the details of initiatives taken by IIIT Guwahati in holistic academic growth as well as student welfare.
In his opening remarks, Professor Parameswar K Iyer, Officiating Director, IIT Guwahati, said “NEP 2020 has set up the base for streamlining an array of progressive objectives, which is expected to catalyse the furtherance of academic and research excellence in the institutes of higher education. NEP2020 envisions setting up a workforce to fulfil the needs of an enlightened, conscious, knowledgeable, and skilled Nation capable of identifying and solving its own problems for long-term sustainability. At IIT Guwahati, we are implementing NEP2020 in a phase-wise manner to make sure the best practices can be included in our curriculum in the most efficient way possible.”
He also listed some of the key features of NEP2020 implemented by IIT Guwahati through multiple inter, multi, and trans-disciplinary initiatives.
Firstly, the establishment of Multi-disciplinary Academic Centres and Schools such as the Centre for Disaster Management and Research and Centre for Indian Knowledge Systems.
Secondly, Research and Development (R&D) in areas such as Health care, Translational Chemical Engineering Science, Agro-Food Processing, Traditional Foods and Agriculture Practices etc. At present, the Institute is working on 470 research and 593 consultancy projects worth over Rs 673.80 crores, Professor Iyer said.
He added that the Integrated Teacher Education Programme, IIT has proposed a Four Years Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP) with multiple exit options.
“Center for Indian Knowledge System – a vision to build capacity for a sustainable knowledge system. Programs such as ‘Introduction to Indian Knowledge Systems’ for PhD students, Archaeological Studies in Ancient Technology as an elective course, and Short term courses on ‘Spoken Sanskrit’ and ‘Spoken Assamese’, are being offered by this centre,” he stated.
IIT Guwahati has also registered in the Academic Bank of Credit (ABC) platform (https://www.abc.gov.in/). It is also the first IIT to create its account on ABC and has already uploaded 3004 graduating students’ degree records.
To bring industry and other professional expertise into the academic institutions, IIT Guwahati has engaged 5 “Professor of Practice”,” Professor Iyer said.
IIT has also collaborated with the Assam Government to set up Assam Advanced Healthcare Innovation Institute – AAHII at the Institute’s campus. Apart from leveraging advanced technologies to transform medical science, AAHII will also offer Advanced Medical Degrees in different programs, including a Diplomate of National Board (DNB), Doctor of Medicine (MD), and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), among others.
Professor further said that IIT is offering Joint Masters Degree Programme in Food Science and Technology with Gifu University, Japan. Along with this, IIT Guwahati has over 100 MoUs with foreign Institutions to provide exposure to its students.
For SDG implementation, the Institute has launched a first-of-its-kind course on UN-Sustainable Development Goals 2030 in its Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) curriculum.
In the concluding remarks, Pavni Gupta, Deputy Director, PIB Guwahati, mentioned that NEP2020, along with its provisions, aims to bring about a change in the way education is seen by students, parents and teachers. Apart from academic excellence, it aims to build essential life skills for a multi-disciplinary outlook in all fields of work, entrepreneurship, service etc.
(with inputs from ANI)
