HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal (Express Photo by Ravi Kanojia)
HRD Minister address colleges live Updates: The Union in an address to higher education institutes through live hosted by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), said that the exam for students in the final year or semester will take place in July, as decided by UGC. He said today, in areas where the situation does not improve, then the exams will be held later but will be conducted for sure. The rest of the students to be promoted based on the past academic record as well as internal assessment.
The minister also said that efforts are being made to ensure that 7.5 lakh students who go abroad from India for higher education will find their future here in India. Further, foreign students will come to study in India through online courses provided by top Indian institutes. Indian teachers will be in demand in foreign nations.
He also added that to ensure that online education reaches everyone and is of high quality, NAAC will come up with new evaluation, assessment, and accreditation parameters soon. The minister is joined by the UGC chairperson. The minister had sought suggestions and queries from teachers, principals, and administrators.
HRD to address 45,000 degree colleges across India (Representational image)
The Minister said that the HRD ministry is working to ensure that quality education reaches to remotes parts of the country. In this live the Ministry of HRD has recently made several announcements for the North East region. The government has granted permission for the establishment of a permanent campus of Sikkim University (a Central University) at Yangyang at a cost of Rs. 986.47 crore. The government of Sikkim has allotted 300 acres of land at cost of Rs. 15 crore, out of which 265.94 acres of land has already been handed over to the University. The handing over of remaining land is under process.
Institutes across the nation are being converted into isolation/quarantine centers. We thank these institutions for coming forward to join us in the fight against coronavirus, the Ministry wrote in a tweet. So far, over 600 institutes have been converted into isolation centers, as per the ministry data.
Teachers should have a love for teaching and love for learners, said DP Singh, chairperson UGC. He added that this is the time when India will have to create minds and youth who are empathetic to all and thinks of the betterment of the world.
Institutes should participate in accreditation and assessment systems. They might not get ranking in the first year but maybe the next year. We need to work hard and work in a mission mode. Those who work hard are the happiest. Colleges have the future of the nation in their hands, said the minister.
The vice-chancellors, principals, teachers are touching lives of 33 crore students and if their parents are included, nearly 100 crore lives are touched by them on a daily basis. They are the students who will shape the new India and academicians are acting as the torchbearers for them and hence the new India, said the minister in his address to higher education institutes
Our teachers and students have researched and developed things that were not manufactured in India before even during this adverse time. This shows that there is no dearth of quality in our students. This can make us a trillion-dollar economy, said the HRD Minister
Takshshila and Nalanda were our proud. They were the top institutes not only in India but abroad. Now, we will aim to achieve that glory again. The new India and new education policy will focus on that. New ideas, science, and research to be the cores of it. We have incorporated views and suggestions from lakhs of people from all levels of education and economy, the minister said.
Online education should be of high quality and to ensure that NAAC will have to create a new assessment system for online education. We will come out with this soon, said Pokhriyal
We will put emphasis on online education through our top 100 institutes and it will ensure that this reaches out to all students. Students from across the world will learn through these courses. UGC is in this direction to ensure that every student in India is reached out through these courses, said Pokhriyal. It is important to push online education as it is the future. We do not know till when this situation will last, he added.
While the rest of the world was sitting at their homes, Indian students were working hard to fight the pandemic. Indian students are doing better research and proving themselves. We are proud of them and their hard work. Right from masks to testing kit for coronavirus, to portable ventilators - students have created it all, said the HRD Minister
The 7.5 lakh students who were going abroad for studies will search for their future in India. Our education institutes are not inferior. We are competing with top universities in the international ranking index including THE, QS, and others. Rather foreign students will come to India and Indian teachers will be in demand to teach in foreign nations, said the HRD Minister.
As the education system has moved online, we have made efforts to ensure to reach out to even the students in remotest of remote areas. We have made Swayam the biggest online portal in the world. For students who do not have access to the internet are given access to education through television sets. Soon, e-vidya will become one portal for one nation, said HRD minister.
UGC has created a task force to map out a new academic schedule. The calendar not only aims at education but also the safety of students. College exams will begin from July but during the exams, social distancing will be maintained. We will take suggestions from the Ministry of Home Affairs on the same, says Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank
The final exams will be held for sure. If students have grievances or doubts they can reach out to COVID-19 task force of UGC or of their respective departments as well as colleges, says HRD Minister
4,60 lakh students have given tests on the National Testing Abhiyas app within three days of launch while 4.70 lakh have downloaded the same. The App has been created by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for the practice of NEET and JEE mock tests. This was needed as exam test practice centers were closed due to the pandemic.
Students in the first semester to be promoted based on previous academic records while second-year students will be promoted based on 50% internal marks and 50% on the previous year or semester record. But final exams to take place. If the condition does not improve by July then the new dates will be released soon.
I am proud to say that the education department has continued its work even during this difficult time. Every minute was used to ensure that students are not only educated but also motived and encouraged throughout the process during this difficult time, said the HRD minister
NAAC has launched a digital platform and is assessing institutes online. We are reaching a huge number of institutes through digital platforms. NAAC is hosting the live interaction.
The live interaction has begun with NAAC welcoming the minister for the interaction. He is joined by senior officials for this live interaction.
The live interaction of the Minister of HRD has begun through his social media handles. The minister to address 45,000 colleges, principals, and administrators through this platform. Live being hosted on request from NAAC, said Pokhriyal