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Strong education system can lead to strong knowledge economy: Kapil Sibal
Friday, 16 November, 2007
New Delhi, Nov.15 (ANI): Strong and quality educational base is required for strong knowledge economy, said Kapil Sibal, Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences at the Make (Most Admired Knowledge Enterprise) Award Ceremony organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), here on Wednesday.
The education system of India needs a complete make-over and should adopt skill and knowledge based education to get employable graduates, said Sibal.
The annual Indian MAKE Award recognizes the best Indian organizations in Knowledge Management (KM) based on an annual study conducted by the Know Network. The annual Indian MAKE study serves as a benchmark to recognize those Indian companies which are leaders in effectively transforming enterprise knowledge into wealth-creating ideas, products and solutions.
The winners of the Indian MAKE Award 2007 are Bharti Airtel, Eureka Forbes, Infosys Technologies, Larsen & Toubro, Satyam Computer Services, TCS, Tata Steel, Wipro Technologies and the overall winner was Mindtree Consulting.
Speaking on the global MAKE award trends, Rory L Chase, Managing Director, Teleos said that Asian MAKE leaders have reached parity with their European counterparts, but lag behind many North American MAKE leaders. He said that Asian MAKE leaders are focusing on intellectual property, intellectual assets and brands, but lack enterprise-wide intellectual capital management strategies.
Asian and European MAKE leaders must focus more on creating world-class learning organizations as Asian firms will come under growing pressure to implement best practices in creating value from customer knowledge, said Chase.
Appreciating the changing knowledge scenario, Kapil Sibal said that India should create an appropriate environment for people to come back and work for India. Food security, healthcare and environment are the key challenges for the world and Chemistry and bio-technology will drive the knowledge requirement to face the situation, he said.
India needs calibrated approach to develop knowledge workers and government is planning to build centers of excellence within the universities to take advantage of the available talents, said Sibal. True requirement of knowledge management will come only when there is surplus of knowledge and knowledge workers, Sibal added.
Deepak Puri, Chairman and Managing Director, Moser Baer said that India is today on the road to becoming a globally recognized knowledge giant and is emerging as the leader in the new knowledge economy, primarily due to India's significant advantage over the developed world in terms of human resources.
He said that participating in KM significantly improves revenue growth, competitive advantage and overall employee development in the long-term whereas reduction in costs, improvement in marketing and enhanced customer focus are some of the immediate benefits of successfully implementing a KM programme.
Focusing on KM to strengthen internal factors is absolutely acceptable but companies should also gauge other external benefits such as share price growth and improved brand loyalty, added Puri. (ANI)
--MP Labels: Education
Kashmir hosts Inter-University Kayaking and Canoeing championships
Monday, 12 November, 2007
Srinagar, Nov.12 (ANI): Over twenty teams from various universities of different States participated in the 4th Inter-University Kayaking and Canoeing Championship held here at the water sports centre at Nageen Lake after a gap of seven years.
Over 450 students arrived here for the three-day championship organised by the Kashmir University under the auspices of Association of Indian Universities, New Delhi from November 10 to 12.
"In this part of the Kashmir valley, the water sports and adventure sports have high fan following. So, we are thinking about developing it on a priority basis," said Abdul Wahid Qureshi, Vice Chancellor, Kashmir University on the inauguration-day.
The event was aimed at giving an impetus to the water sports in Kashmir, as the Valley is endowed with suitable natural sites essential for promoting water sports, including water resources and other infrastructure.
All participants showed a lot of enthusiasm and said that Kashmir was best suited to hold water sports championship in the country.
Local participants wanted a regular coach for the team which would help them improve their sporting capabilities.
"We have a lot of talent; the need is to tap the talent. There should be a regular coach, although the facilities are available. The more we will practice, the better we will perform," said Vilayat Hussain, a participant.
Participants from other States have been upbeat and enthusiastic to compete with each other in the tournament.
"I have come to Srinagar for first time and feeling very nice. People here are also very good. We will try to win medal in the tournament. We have put in hard labour and expect that we will get the fruits of our labour," said Sonal, another participant.
Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving across water. It differentiated from canoeing by the fact that a kayak has a closed cockpit and a canoe has an open cockpit. They also use a two bladed paddle.
Kayakers sit in a seat on the bottom of the boat with their legs extended out in front of them. Canoeists will either sit on an elevated bench seat or kneel directly on the bottom of the boat.
Canoeing is the activity of paddling a canoe for the purpose of recreation (also called a float trip), sport, or transportation. It usually refers exclusively to using a paddle to propel a canoe with only human muscle power.
A Kayak is propelled using a paddle with two blades where the paddler sits with their legs in front of them, whereas canoes are propelled using single- or double-bladed paddles where the paddler is kneeling or sitting.
Kayaks are usually closed-decked boats with a spray deck, while canoes are usually open boats.
Jammu and Kashmir has organised many sporting events this year. The State administration is also taking various measures to promote tourism in the picturesque valley through water and adventure sports..
- AY Labels: Education, Kashmir
Cabinet gives nod to IGRUI, CAE management contract agreement
Thursday, 8 November, 2007
Cabinet gives nod to IGRUI, CAE management contract agreement
New Delhi, Nov 8 (ANI): The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for management contract agreement of Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi (IGRUI) with Messrs CAE of Canada.
The Cabinet also gave its approval for formation of a subsidiary company of Airports Authority of India (AAI) for establishing a flying and aviation training institute at Gondia in Maharashtra as a Joint Venture Enterprise with CAE.
The management for taking of IGRUA would be taken over by CAE for better management of the Akademi in a more professional manner in order to produce 100 pilots per year, a government release said.
The subsidiary company of AAI will establish a flying and aviation training institute that will help in meeting the growing requirements of pilots and technical manpower relating to the aviation industry. (ANI)
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-AA Labels: Education
CCEA approves revision of centrally sponsored hostel scheme for SC students
New Delhi, Nov 8 (ANI): The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today gave its approval to the proposal mooted by the Union Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry for the revision of the centrally sponsored scheme of hostels for SC girls and boys.
The primary objective of the revised scheme is to attract the implementing agencies for undertaking hostel construction programme, especially for SC girls towards the broader vision of containment and reduction of their drop out rate.
According to the revised scheme, focus would be given for construction of hostels for middle and higher secondary levels of education. However, hostels can also be constructed for college and university levels of education. The hostels will be completed within a period of two years from the date of sanction of the project.
The Government of India would meet the entire cost of construction for SC girls' hostels as central assistance. However, in the case of boys' hostels, the prevailing pattern of funding would continue, which is 50 percent for States, 100 percent for Union Territory Administration, 90 percent for Central Universities and 45 percent for other Universities.
Further, as hitherto, Central assistance for NGOs would be eligible only for expansion of their existing hostel buildings. In addition to meting the cost of construction in the form of central assistance as mentioned above, the Centre would also provide one-time grant of Rs.2500 per student for making provisions of a cot, a table and a chair for each hosteller.
Another important provision included in the revised scheme is involvement of Panchayati Raj Institutions in the matter of selection of hostel site and overseeing the functioning of the hostels. Further, it has also been provided in the scheme that priority in allotment of hostel accommodation would be given to SC students whose parent are either "Safai Karamcharis" or engaged in unclean occupations.
At its weekly meeting here today, the CCEA also gave its approval for development of offshore container terminal on build, operate and transfer basis at Mumbai Port.
The development will be done under Licence Agreement to be entered into by Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) with the BOT operator namely, aConsortium of Gammon India Limited, Gammon Infrastructure Limited and Dragados SPL, Spain.
The total cost of the OCT Project is estimated to be Rs.1228 crore. The investment by the BOT Operator will be Rs.862 crore and the investment by port to carry out works under their scope will be Rs.366.39 crore. The capacity addition due to implementation of this project will be 9.6 million tones per annum.
The project will enable the port to handle large size container vessels, which will save precious foreign exchange; it will facilitate the Mumbai Port to bridge the capacity gap in Mumbai Region along with JNPT; will facilitate augmented growth in trade, employment generation and increasing income, incremental regional economic development in addition to other spin-off economic benefits; and will provide a cost effective and efficient gateway for imports and exports for industries in the Special Economic Zone, the opening of retail sector. (ANI) Labels: Education
Strong Oz dollar may make education too costly for Indian students
Sydney, Nov.8 (ANI): Australia's historically high currency exchange rate may prompt Indian and Chinese students to seek university admissions in the United States and Britain in the near future.
Commentators said more students from China and India might begin to choose the US, with its weak currency, or Britain over Australia.
According to commentator Simon Marginson, the Australian Government may have to step in to shore up second-tier universities, which are "losing sleep" over the currency crunch.
These universities presently feel deprived of foreign student income. With markets expecting an increase in official interest rates today, and sustained upward pressure on the Australian dollar, the 9.5 billion dollar education export industry is facing an unprecedented challenge on price competitiveness.
Professor Marginson holds a chair in higher education at the University of Melbourne.
Next month senior university managers will meet officials from the Department of Education, Science and Training to talk about risks in the export market. The currency would be on the agenda, according to Stephen Martin, pro vice-chancellor (international) at Victoria University, who chairs the group of managers responsible for offshore markets.
The combination of deep dependence on foreign student revenue and a historically high currency is new for the sector.
US-based consultant Daniel Guhr, who believed second-tier institutions offering a "commoditised, cost-driven product" would be hardest hit, said Australia had to get its marketing right.
"You can't compete on low cost because there are always countries that will outbid you on cost, you have to compete on quality, brand and outcome," said Dr Guhr, of the Illuminate Consulting Group.
He suggested that scholarships and FEE-HELP for international students would promote quality and attract talent.
Professor Marginson said scholarships for overseas postgraduate students would "take the edge off" Australia's reputation for being "cost and quantity driven".
Hong-Kong based consultant Alan Olsen said discounting was not the thing to do.
"Reducing the fees would send the wrong message," said Mr Olsen, director of Strategy Policy and Research in Education.
His research suggested the currency effect would take 18 months to make itself
But several commentators said the currency effect should not be overstated since education exports had enjoyed strong growth during the past few years despite the steadily rising Australian dollar. (ANI) Labels: Education
Cabinet approves the setting up of NIFT centre at Rae Bareli
AA: New Delhi, Nov 8 (ANI): The Union Cabinet today approved the
setting up of a National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) centre
at Rae Bareli as a full-fledged centre like seven other NIFT centres
already functioning in the country. The infrastructure and other facilities at the full-fledged centre of
NIFT would ease pressure on existing Delhi NIFT centre. It will also minimise the regional mismatch between the number of
seats available and the number of applicants based on present
locations of NIFT centres. It would also meet the requirement of additional seats on account of
implementation of Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation as and when
it is implemented. The centre would be first centre to be set up in any backward areas of
the country. The cabinet also gave its approval for introduction of the Block Grant
Scheme of funding on the lines of Indian Institute of Technology
(IITs), Indian Institute of Management (IIMs), for NIFT. This will provide further functional and financial autonomy to the
institute and will encourage it to generate more internal resources,
promote innovation and result in an overall improvement in the
standard of education and research. The base year for the Block Grant Scheme will be 2006-07 and the
scheme will come into effect from 2007-08. (ANI) Labels: Education
Kalam advocates region-oriented approach to development in federal set-ups
Tuesday, 6 November, 2007
New Delhi, Nov 6 (ANI): Former President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam today
advocated a region-oriented approach to development in the countries
that are following a federal set-up of governance. Speaking on the second day of the fourth International Conference on
Federalism here, Kalam said that developmental schemes and solutions
to problems need to be region-based, as India's resources, climate and
terrain are region-based with unique cultures of regions. He said that the states should work to their core competence and
complement one another, adding that the overall planning at the
central level should focus on regional development. In his address, Power Minister Shushil Kumar Shinde said that the
country as vast as India could not have progressed as well as it did
without a federal structure. Discussions in theme sessions also got underway today. The Conference
is based on four broad themes and twelve sub-themes. The topics for
theme sessions include Building on and Accommodating Diversities,
Emerging Issues in Fiscal Federalism, Interaction in a Federal system
and, Local Government and Federal Systems. For the first time, local
government has been chosen as the topic of a theme session. Addressing the Conference yesterday, External Affairs Minister Pranab
Mukherjee called for hastening the process of devolution of power at
the grass-roots level. He said that without a sense of participation
in governance, there can be no credible empowerment. In his address, the Panchayati Raj, Youth Affairs and Sports and
Development of North Eastern Region Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said
that the only way to achieve inclusive growth is by strengthening
Panchayats, the third tier of democracy. Addressing the Conference, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said
that democratic governments are better equipped to maintain a cohesive
policy amidst diverse interests and priorities. He stressed the need
to amicably resolve all fiscal issues without jeopardizing national
unity and integrity. The three-day conference, which will concluded tomorrow, is being
organized by the Inter State Council Secretariat of the Government of
India in partnership with the Forum of Federations, a Canada based
international forum of federal countries. The earlier conferences
were held in Canada in 1999, Switzerland in 2002 and Belgium in 2005.
(ANI) Labels: Education
Arjun Singh to open Conference on ‘Social Exclusion and Inclusive Policy’
Friday, 26 October, 2007
MP:New Delhi, Oct 26 (ANI): Union Minister of Human Resource
Development Arjun Singh will inaugurate a Conference on 'Social
Exclusion and Inclusive Policy' here today. Prof. B.L. Mungekar, member of the Planning Commission, will be the
Guest of Honour. The two-day conference is being organised by the Indian Institute of
Dalit Studies, Delhi. This conference is being jointly sponsored by
Indian Institute of Dalit Studies, Delhi and Princeton University,
Princeton (USA). The main focus of this conference is to discuss the issue of social
exclusion and discrimination faced by marginalized sections of the
population such as SC, ST, OBC and religious minorities like Muslims
and similar groups. This is the first conference of its kind which will discuss through
presentation of papers the economic discrimination faced by
discriminated groups in various market and non market transactions. This will include employment market in rural and urban areas,
occupation and business, various factors market, services, and also
education and health. Most of the papers are based on original research and will bring new
insight on the theme of market and non market discrimination. In case of labour market discrimination, the conference will discuss
the four studies conducted jointly by Indian Institute of Dalit
Studies and Princeton University, USA. The studies have been published
by Economic and Political Weekly in the form of a special issue. It will also discuss the discrimination in labour market and
occupation in rural areas of Haryana, Orrisa, and Gujarat. Besides, the conference will also discuss the discriminatory
experiences of Dalits in educational institutions and in seeking
health services in primary health centre and private doctors. It will discuss for the first time the inequality in ownership of
private enterprise by lower caste and higher castes. Some papers will
discuss the discrimination faced by religious groups such as Muslims
in economic spheres. This conference is of significant importance as it will address the
most important problem being faced by vast section of population,
namely SC, ST, OBC, religious minority like Muslim and women and
currently being discussed in the academic and government circles. Based on the insights from the papers, the conference will also
discuss policies to overcome the discrimination. The discussion will centre on the various aspects of inclusive policy
in the spheres of employment, education, health, business and other
spheres both in public and private sector. The participants from various parts of the country will attend the
conference. Besides, there are participants from Northern Ireland and
USA. (ANI) Labels: Education
Cabinet approves setting up of IISERs
Thursday, 25 October, 2007
MP: New Delhi, Oct 25 (ANI): The Union Cabinet today gave its approval
for the setting up of two Indian Institutes of Science Education and
Research (IISERs) at Bhopal and Thiruvananthapuram, at a total cost of
Rs. 1000 crores ( Rs. 500 crore per institute). On the recommendation of the Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime
Minister (SAC-PM), the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD)
has already set up three IISERs at Pune, Kolkata and Mohali. The IISERs at Bhopal and Thiruvananthapuram would be the fourth and
fifth to be set up in the country. The Government of India has decided to create the IISERs with the
unique objective of integrating undergraduate education, postgraduate
education and research under the same umbrella. The basic idea of IISER is to create research universities of the
highest caliber in which teaching and education will be totally
integrated with the state of the art research. These universities will be devoted to undergraduate and postgraduate
teaching in sciences in an intellectually vibrant atmosphere of
research. One of the important goals of creating these universities is to make
education and careers in basic sciences more attractive by providing
opportunities in integrative teaching and learning of sciences and
breaking the barriers of traditional disciplines. One other significant concept of the proposed IISER is to actively
forge strong relationship with existing universities and colleges and
network with laboratories and institutions, in order to share and
complement faculty resources as well as research, library and
computational facilities. IISERs at Bhopal and Thiruvananthapuram will provide high-quality
scientific manpower to government organizations such as the Department
of Atomic Energy (DAE), Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
(CSIR), Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Defence Research
and Development Organization (DRDO), teaching profession in other
universities and other sectors of the society at large. They will also
cater to the growing research needs of the private sector. The IISERs will have programmes of study called schools in various
interdisciplinary areas of Biological Sciences, Mathematical and
Computer Sciences, Physical Sciences, Chemical Sciences and Materials
Sciences. Each Institute is expected to have about 2000 undergraduate and
postgraduate students and research scholars, and about 200 faculty
members, across disciplines. The academic programmes will emphasise the spirit of research at an
early stage of education. The laboratory infrastructure of IISERs at Bhopal and
Thiruvananthapuram will be of international standards. They will
attract the best talent within the country as well as successful
Indian scientists from abroad. (ANI) Labels: Education
Assam Agriculture University courses on tea gardening and processing becoming popular
MP: Guwahati, Oct 25 (ANI): Assam Agriculture University (AAU) in
Jorhat has the distinction of being the first university to introduce
courses on tea gardening and processing. Youngsters are showing keen interest in the course that provides them
jobs at the end. The only university in the world, which provides a bachelors degree in
tea husbandry and technology, includes in the course, as well as
classroom studies and exposure of the field during the rural work
experience program. The students are also placed in groups to carry out different
practical activities related to tea gardening. Shamima Jasmin, B.Sc third year student of tea husbandry and
technology, said, "We can be selected for the post of assistant
manager and for executive posts. We can also go for the tea auction
centers and for tea testing." The tea and husbandry course is divided into three broad areas - tea
husbandry, tea processing and engineering and tea economic and
management. Students from countries, like Nigeria and some South Asian countries
come here for training. They come here due to the high quality of
faculty. "We expose our students to the various faces of the industry so that
they become competent to work in these industries. We can proudly say
that most of our graduates are holding very important position in the
tea industry," said Dr. A.Deka, Professor, AAU. The students, after undergoing intensive course, get placed in the tea
Estate, tea Board of India, tea research association and firms related
to their stream. Almost ninety-nine percent of the students find jobs of their choice.
Assam is gradually finding way to channelise the productive energies
of the students. (ANI) Labels: Education
IITs urge bar on any tie up with Dow Chemicals
MP: New Delhi, Oct 25 (ANI); Alumni of Indian Institutes of Technology
(IIT) have urged IITs to bar Union Carbide owner, Dow Chemical Company
(DCC) from any partnership with premier institutes. Over 1000 alumni and faculty members signed a petition barring DCC
from entering into any partnerships or recruitment of students from
various IITs across the country. "Not to allow Dow to recruit students from IIT's and not to have any
kind of relationship with IIT's. Basically, Dow is trying to gain
legitimacy by having relations with IIT's," said Arvind Kejriwal,
Magasaysay award winner and an IIT alumni. Praful Bidwai, another alumni of IIT and noted columnist, added, "Dow
Chemicals, we also know has an extremely questionable record both in
the United States and other parts of the world. It would be a terribly
dangerous precedent for Dow to be exonerated of its legal, ethical and
moral liabilities." In December 1984, tonnes of toxic gas leaked from the Union Carbide
plant in Bhopal, killing 3,500 people immediately, and maintaining
thousands more. According to the activists, the actual death toll from post-disaster
diseases is almost 33,000, and continues to rise as people living near
the plant drink water poisoned by chemical waste. Union Carbide, after a protracted legal battle, paid 470 million
dollars to the Indian Government as settlement in 1989. The victims,
on an average, received 25,000 rupees in case of illness and 100,000
rupees or so in case of a death in the family. It also accepted moral responsibility for the tragedy and established
a 100 million dollar charitable trust fund to build a hospital for
victims. Later, Union Carbide was taken over by Dow Chemical. Michigan-based Dow Chemical says it is not responsible for the clean
up as it never owned or operated the plant. The Madhya Pradesh State
Government now owns the abandoned plant. Twenty-two years on, thousands of victims of the tragedy are still
battling deadly diseases. According to doctors, many survivors -- and some from a generation
born after the disaster -- still suffer from deep psychiatric
disorders and stunted growth while thousands of women have severe
gynaecological problems. (ANI) Labels: Education
Students protest killing of Kashmiri teacher
Wednesday, 24 October, 2007
MP Srinagar, Oct 23 (ANI): Scores of students staged a protest in the campus of Kashmir University in Srinagar on Monday against killing of a teacher allegedly by army personnel. Students holding banners marched through the campus, chanting anti-army slogans. They demanded a swift inquiry into the matter. The protestors blamed the authorities for turning a deaf ear towards the incident. "Through out protest we want the authorities to know that such an incident has happened," said Mudasir Ali, a student. Students condemned the alleged violent act by the Army. They said that the Army personnel needed to learn some lessons on non-violence. "In just a month he (J-K Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad) has spent millions to spread (Mahatma) Gandhi's slogan of non-violence. I just want to tell our Chief Minister that instead of organising such seminars for students, he should do it for the Indian army," said Sheikh. Abdul Rashid Mir was allegedly shot down after he objected to alleged harassment by army men of the females accompanying him while he was passing through the Rawatpora forest on Saturday. Meanwhile, the army has initiated a probe into the matter. They have arrested one soldier, Mohammad Tariq, for killing the teacher. Police is also conducting an independent trial into the matter. (ANI) Labels: Education, Kashmir
Mid-Day meal scheme extended to upper primary
New Delhi, Oct.22 (ANI): The Mid Day meal scheme has been extended by the Government to the Upper Primary Stage of Education (classes VI to VIII) in 3479 Educationally Backward Blocks (EBBs) in 2007-08 and areas across the country from 2008-09. The extension to the Upper Primary Stage in EBBs has already become effective from October 01, 2007. About 1.7 crore children at upper primary will be covered. The Government of India has released the Central assistance to the respective States for extension of Mid-Day Meal programme to upper primary stage.
A sum of Rs.7324 Crores was provided in the Budget 2007-08 for the MDM Programme, representing a 37 percent increase over the budget provision for 2006-07.
The Expenditure as on 30-09-2007 is Rs.2231.12 Crores (30 percent of BE) including Rs. 422.94 crores towards cooking cost for upper primary stage. In addition, 3,22,785 MTs of food grain has been allocated to States/UTs for extension of coverage to upper primary stage. The calorific value of the mid day meal has been fixed for upper primary at 700 calories and 20 grams of protein.
Foodgrains @ 150 grams per child/ school day for the upper primary stage would be provided. The cooking cost of mid day meal for upper primary stage at Rs 2.50 per child/school day with the NER States contribution being a minimum of Rs 0.20 per child/school day and for all other States and UTs, the State contribution being Rs 0.50 per child/school day. Transport Subsidy has been enhanced for eleven Special Category States (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand) from Rs. 100 per quintal to Rs. 125 per quintal. The Central assistance to construct kitchen-cum-store in upper primary schools would be provided @ Rs 60,000 per unit, as in the case of primary stage besides, Central assistance for kitchen devices to upper primary schools would be @ Rs 5,000 per school as in the case of primary stage.
The name of Scheme has been changed from ‘National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education’ to ‘National Programme of Mid Day Meals in Schools’. (ANI) Labels: Education
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