Saturday, November 8, 2025
Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 720

JHARKHAND Laying Strong Foundation of School Education

By
Akash
-

Government of Jharkhand is very much committed to the cause of quality education for tribal children. The state has also developed textbooks for primary level other than textbooks for classes 1-2 in five tribal languages, says Aradhana Patnaik, Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Government of Jharkhand, in a candid interview with Gautam Debroy of Elets News Networks (ENN).

Tell us about the school education scenario in Jharkhand.
 The Department of School Education and Literacy, Government of Jharkhand, aims to provide education of equitable quality to all children to create an education system that provides access, equity and affordability while enabling every human being for a lifelong learning from early days of life.
Jharkhand has significantly improved its school education system since its inception, in terms of school access and enrolment of children. There are 40,174 government elementary schools, 2,637 secondary schools, and 522 higher secondary schools. Around 62 lakh students are enrolled in these schools. At the elementary level, the teacher-pupil ratio averages at 1:39. To improve the availability of teachers, 16,349 elementary teachers and 1719 secondary teachers have been recruited in 2015-16. We are in the process of recruiting nearly 18000 high school teachers this year.

Can you share some of the initiated programmes?
 We have started certain innovative and dynamic programme interventions to improve quality of education. The statewide ‘Vidyalay Chalen Chalayen Abhiyan’ focuses on enrolment of all children in schools. Then through effective operationalisation of schools it attempts to ensure that all children attend schools regularly and learn continuously. For school operationalisation, we have certain dynamic activities such as Baal Samagam (all round student performance improvement), Kasturba Sangam (performance improvement of girls from vulnerable background), Baal Sansad (for student leadership and holistic development), Buniyad and Buniyad plus (for ensuring early grade learning skills of all children), Prayas (to enhance student attendance through integrated collaboration of students, teachers and community members), ‘Hamara vidyalaya Kaisa Ho’ (guidelines for school improvement), Pariwartan movement (active teachers and teacher educators support each other for school improvement), SESM (school education support mission for programme review and support in every district), etc. other than regular programme interventions under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan, Mid-Day Meals Scheme, and teacher education.

Is school dropout in Jharkhand a major problem?
 The dropout rate of children in schools has reduced over the years. As per our records (U-DISE), the dropout rate at elementary level is 5.1% in the state compared to 4.1% at the national-level. It was around 10% in 2010-11. We are trying to reduce dropout by focusing on quality education and thereby regular attendance of students and teachers.

What steps have been taken in this regard?
We have designed specific programmes to address the issue of dropout in the system. “Prayas” initiative aims in an integrated manner to bring back all children to school who remain absent for more than 3 days. We have a dedicated portfolio in the Baal Sansad (child cabinet) as Ministry for Attendance who continuously strive in partnership with their concerned teachers and SMC members to get each absentee child back to school. We also have initiated an SMSbased attendance monitoring system for teachers and students in all districts. We are also working on strategies to improve quality of school education so that children like to come to schools regularly and take part in various learning activities. We are also in the process of enrolling all children under Aadhar to reduce duplicacy in children’s enrolment.
Also there are issues related to children’s home languages which are different from school language which causes learning disadvantages. Hence we are going to initiate a mother tongue based multilingual education system in multilingual areas to enable children learn smoothly.

What is the status of SSA mission in Jharkhand?
Over the years, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) has significantly contributed in improvement of infrastructure in schools. Our focus is on providing quality education and improving learning levels of every child. We have initiated various activities for improvement in quality education in schools. Some of our major initiatives include Khel Khel Mein – children’s school readiness programme in early parts of class 1, Buniyad and Buniyad Plus – an integrated approach to strengthen early grade reading skills of children in primary classes, early grade mathematics in primary classes, reading programme in blocks with worst educational indicators, CCE – Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation process for assessing and enhancing learning outcomes of students, special saturday classes focussing on personality development and moral values. JCERT has developed text books for classes 1-5 in 2015-16 and for 6-8 in 2016-17.
The State has also undertaken several measures to reduce drop out and to improve quality of education by providing free textbooks, school kits, uniforms and mid-day meals. To promote girls’ education, state is providing free tabs, gym for physical development and Wi-Fi in all Kasturba Gandhi BalikaVidyalayas (KGBVs) of the state. Science centres have been developed in KGBVs and some schools in several districts. We are also promoting the Aavishkar programme in secondary schools to promote interest of students in science along with their innovations.
“Baal Samagam” is organised annually to promote leadership qualities, inculcate team spirit, discover hidden talent and enable children of government schools to participate in a wide range of scholastic and co-scholastic learning activities from their schools to block, district and state level. In a similar way “Kasturba Sangam” is organised for girls from Kasturba Gandhi BalikaVidyalayas. We are going to initiate Shikshak Samagam for all government school teachers to motivate and enhance their skills.

Any special measures to attract the poor tribals into the education fold?
Our state is very much committed to the cause of quality education for tribal children. Recently, the state has developed textbooks for primary level other than textbooks for classes 1-2 in 5 tribal (Santhali, Ho, Mundari, Kurukh and Kharia) languages.
Out of these, textbooks have also been developed in Olchiki (Santhali) and WarangChiti (Ho) also. Using these, we are in the process of initiating a mother tongue based multilingual education programme in the state. This will enable the tribal children to learn in their mother tongue in the initial years so that they acquire basic language learning skills. Gradually they will be guided in a phased manner to bridge with Hindi and English in pedagogically appropriate ways so that they never face any language disadvantages. For this we have identified specific schools in different districts in multilingual pockets.
The state government has established 57 Jharkhand Balika Awasiya Vidyalayas for girls in remote blocks of the state and five residential schools for dropout children. Seven more residential schools are to be opened this year. The state has started Mukhyamantri Vidyalakshmi Yojana for SC/ST girls of Class 6 to address the problem of drop out amongst these girls. The state has also initiated Aakansha Coaching and Career Counselling programme for senior secondary students with focus on SC/ST students. The state government is also focussing on vocational education and skill development of high school children.

We believe strongly in the use of ICT in school education. We are in the process of providing electricity to all schools in the state by 2017-18. We have promoted certain innovative approaches for improving attendance and quality of education in schools by using ICT

Are you getting any benefit from the use of ICT in education sector?
 We believe strongly in the use of ICT in school education. We are in the process of providing electricity to all schools in the state by 2017-18. We have promoted certain innovative approaches for improving attendance and quality of education in schools by using ICT.
We have set up SMART classes in all KGBVs and certain high schools. Tablets and WiFi connectivity is being provided to all the KGBVs. We would soon be implementing ICT based learning in over 1,000 high schools and computer-aided learning in nearly 500 middle schools of the state. We have also introduced E- Shiksha (e-learning classes through satellite based video conferencing) in some of the high schools. Our SMS-based approach of monitoring attendance and mid-day meals (e-madhyan) is doing well. We are using biometric system in all high schools to track teachers attendance. We are also in the process of developing a school based MIS system for tracking learning level of each child in the state.

What are the offers for private investors in school education in Jharkhand?
 Our state is inviting private investors in school education with focus on support for quality improvement. We are striving to make Jharkhand an education hub. Our honourable Chief Minister is continuously organising road shows in different states and outside to invite private partners to invest in Jharkhand. This is a very positive sign for the state. We have a good number of development partners and private partners who are supporting us to improve quality of early grade reading, early grade mathematics, multilingual education, computer-aided learning, learning assessment, attendance enhancement, etc.
We will continue to invite private investors to come up with innovative and contextual solutions for Jharkhand so that our children, especially children in rural areas and vulnerable situations benefit in learning on a continuous mode.n

The Growing Market for e-LEARNING

By
digitalLEARNING Network
-

India is a growing market for education where traditional classrooms are being steadily replaced by interactive whiteboards with projectors and speakers all over the country. Various government initiatives are being adapted to boost the growth of distance education market, besides focusing on new education techniques, such as E-learning and M-learning, observes T Radhakrishan of Elets News Network (ENN).

The country is witnessing a revolution in education sector like never before. Powered by the growing demand for quality education by families and for skilled development by working professionals, educational organisations are introducing better learning options — e learning or online education.

mlearning educationThrough the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) is aiming to increase digital literacy to at least 50 percent among Indians from the present 15 percent in next three years, private organisations including multinational companies (MNCs) are coming out with innovative solutions for a better learning and 24×7 education options, with the help of technology and Internet.

Traditional classrooms are being replaced by interactive whiteboards with projectors and speakers all over the country. The computer-based and Internet-based method of learning means that new technology is being introduced to enhance the learning process.

“India is a growing market for education,” said Tim Barton, Managing Director, Global Academic Publishing Division, Oxford University Press (OUP), while launching online courses in India recently. The OUP has launched online courses in India to help the academia in research activities. “Through Epigeum, high-quality online content assembled globally by experts will reach more Indian universities through online and blended learning,” he said.

According to Barton, India has an ever growing ambition to operate in the global arena and that authors care about making an impact within and beyond India.

Education and Training
India holds an important place in the global education industry and has become the second largest market for e-learning after the US.

Some Central Government Initiatives are:
The Union budget 2016-17 has made the following provisions for the education sector:

  • 10 public and 10 private educational institutions to be made world-class.
  • Scheme to get `500 crore ($ 73.36 million) for promoting entrepreneurship among Schedule Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ ST)
  • Digital Repository for all school leaving certificates and diplomas
  • Rs 1,000 crore ($ 146.72 million) allocated for higher education financing
  • Rs 1,700 crore ($ 250 million) allocated for 1500 multi-skill development centres
  • 62 new Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNV) to provide quality education
  • Digital literacy scheme to be launched for covering six crore additional rural households
  • Objective to skill one crore youth in the next three years under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna (PMKVY)

The Government of India has signed a financing agreement with The World Bank, for International Development Association (IDA) credit of US$ 300 million, for the Madhya Pradesh Higher Education Quality Improvement Project, which aims to improve student outcomes, especially of disadvantaged groups in selected Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and increase the effectiveness of the higher education system in Madhya Pradesh.

The Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry has entered into a partnership with private companies, including Tata Motors Ltd, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd and real-estate firm Hubtown Ltd, to open three Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs), through Public-Private Partnership (PPP), at Nagpur, Ranchi, and Pune.

Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi launched the Skill India initiative – ‘Kaushal Bharat, Kushal Bharat’. Under this initiative, the government has set itself a target of training 400 millioncitizens by 2022 that would enable them to find jobs. The initiatives launched include various programmes like: Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015, Skill Loan scheme, and the National Skill Development Mission.

PMKVY is the flagship program under the Skill India Initiative and it includes incentivising skill training by providing financial rewards on completion of training to the participants. Over the next year 2.4 million Indians are believed to be benefitted from this scheme.

Skill Loan Scheme has been designed to disburse loans of `5,000 (about $75) to Rs 150,000 (about $2,260) to 3.4 million Indians planning to develop their skills in next five years.

The National Skill Development Mission is developed to expedite the implementation of skilling activities in India by providing robust institutional framework at the centre and the state.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will train bureaucrats from the HRD ministry, experts from schools boards and primary school teachers in Mathematics and Science Subjects to enable them to learn skills to formulate lesson plans that stimulate students’ learning and thus contribute to improving the quality of Mathematics and science education.

The Government of India has launched a digital employment exchange that will enable industrial enterprises to find suitable workers and job-seekers to find employment.

The Government of India has launched the National Web Portal for promotion of National Apprenticeship Scheme for Graduates, Diploma holders and 10+2 pass-outs vocational certificate holders.

India and Australia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost partnerships between the two countries in the fields of higher education and research, including technical and professional education, schools, vocational education and training.

The National Skill Development Corporation of India (NSDC) under a Public Private Partnership promoted by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Center for Research and Industrial Staff Performance (CRISP), India to explore national and international opportunities for strengthening skills development in India.

“We have several plans for online education in India,” says Narendra Ranade, Marketing Director, School Education & ELT, Oxford University Press India.

“The higher education market is the key driver for the elearning market in India,” says Paras Bansal, Business Head, Higher Education, Oxford University Press India.

India has become the second largest market for e-learning after the US.

Road Ahead
Various government initiatives are being adopted to boost the growth of distance education market, besides focusing on new education techniques, such as E-learning and M-learning.

With human resource increasingly gaining significance in the overall development of the country, development of education infrastructure is expected to remain the key focus in the current decade. In this scenario, infrastructure investment in the education sector is likely to see a considerable increase in the current decade. Hopefully, its influence on the Indian education system and quality will reflect prominently among generations to come.

Changing Higher Education Scenario in Jharkhand

By
Akash
-

Ajoy Kumar Singh, Secretary, Department of Higher, Technical Education & Skill Development, Government of Jharkhand shares state government’s plans to improve the technical and higher education scenario of Jharkhand, in conversation with Harshal Yashwant Desai & Gautam Debroy of Elets News Networks (ENN).

The Government of Jharkhand has taken several initiatives in the areas of skill development and higher & technical education. Kindly elaborate on this – especially the challenges?
 The major challenge for the state, at this moment, is the access to higher and technical education. Against the national average of 23 Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER), we have only 13 GER in the state. In terms of defi cit of number of colleges in higher education, we have college population index of 8 viz-a- viz national average of 26. So, in order to match the national average, we require 692 national colleges. Similarly, we require 80 polytechnic colleges and 26 engineering colleges to match the national average. It clearly indicates that there is a large defi cit of national colleges in the state and in order to address this crucial issue, the government has planned to construct and open about 100 new engineering, degree and polytechnic colleges in near future. We are also encouraging private institutions as government alone can’t fulfill this gap. So, we have notified model guidelines for setting private universities. Due to our effort, recently three new universities namely, Amity, Pragya and ISEC have opened their academic session this year. So, in the last 7 – 8 months, we have open three new private universities. We have also open Raksha Shakti University which is a government institution. We are also trying to increase the access of higher education by running second shift in several colleges.

educationWhat about the quality of education? What are the new changes the government will be bringing about in near future?
Technology is a greatest enabler. It provides e-learning platform in higher and technical education. We have taken initiative of making all our campuses Wi-Fi enabled. The project has already been initiated by the department of higher education and skill development. In the first phase, we are going to enable about 5 varsity and 30 colleges in the state. We are also planning to upload video and audio lectures on websites. Further, we are also in the process of building e-library.
There is a huge gap between industry requirements and what we are teaching in colleges. Students who have passed are not getting jobs. In order to address this issue, we are changing the course curriculum. We have instructed varsities to change the curriculum so that we can bridge the gap between industry and academic. We are also encouraging tie-ups between universities and industries.
We have already signed MoU with Cisco, Oracle and Tata and we are soon going to sign MoU with Siemens. These companies will be bringing new software, technology and solutions to provide better education to our students. It will enable students to get immediate jobs. We are also incorporating skill development certificate courses in our colleges for all. These courses will get integrated in our education systems so that students studying in regular courses can get relevant hands-on experience to help them while working in industry.

The role of private institutions is certainly important. What incentive the government is offering to these institutions?
We will be offering the land to such institutions on susidised government rate. For engineering and polytechnic colleges, government will construct the infrastructure and hand them over to private players to run the colleges.
There are plans for some other incentives for private institutions – these will be revealed in due time. Education and skill development is a major thrust area and it is certainly the major focus area for the government. Through our road shows, we have received several proposals – from big corporate sector to improve the education level in the state. As mentioned earlier, we have already signed MoU with private technology players.

Would you like to comment on foreign investment in education in Jharkhand?
We know some local players are planning to bring foreign investment in education and skill development areas, but nothing concrete has come to us so far.

Technology is a greatest enabler. It provides e-learning platform in higher and technical education. We have taken initiative of making all our campuses Wi-Fi enabled.

What are the major challenges for improving higher and technical education in the state?
Access, Equity and Excellence – are the three major features for higher and technical education. However, for us – at this point – the greatest challenge is to increase the GER. It is 13 and we need to take it to 32 by 2022. Further, improving the employability is another area which needs to be focused on. We need to produce students which can directly be deployed by the industries.

ICFAI Pioneering Quality Higher Education in Jharkhand

By
digitalLEARNING Network
-

The Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India University( ICFAI), Jharkhand, is the State’s first private University. Professor ORS Rao, Vice-Chancellor, ICFAI University, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN) tells us how the university is empowering and increasing the employability of the students.

What is the overview of ICFAI ?
ICFAI group pioneered quality higher education in India for over 30 years, with its motto – Meritum Ethicus ( Merit with Ethics). It has a pan-India presence in 16 states, with three strategic institutional units, which include 11 ICFAI universities, six IBS business schools and flexible learning programmes ( Distance Mode).

What is your university’s vision? What standard of quality does your university follow ?
ICFAI University, Jharkhand‘s vision is be a top ranking private university for students, staff and corporates and is recognised for excellence in higher education and research, especially relevant to social needs of Jharkhand. The mission of the university is to offer world class, innovative, career-oriented professional, post graduate and undergraduate programmes through technology –enabled pedagogies to equip students with the requisite professional and life skills as well as social sensitivity and high sense of ethics.

What made you to set up an university in Jharkhand ?
What are the opportunities you see in Jharkhand ? In 2008, when we studied the status of higher education in Jharkhand, we noticed that there was dearth of higher educational institutions that offer quality education. We saw an opportunity to make quality education, accessible to the students of Jharkhand so that skilled manpower is developed for the socioeconomic growth of the State. So, we set up our university in Jharkhand, which is the State’s first private university.

How is ICFAI different from its competitors?
ICFAI University, Jharkhand introduces programmes that are relevant to the State of Jharkhand, so that the graduating students are employable. The University is committed to groom its students into competent and successful professionals with values. In order to make it happen, we focus on imparting requisite knowledge and hands-on professional skills to our students, besides inculcating sound character. We revise our curriculum every year, in line with the changing requirements of the industry and developments in science and technology. We deploy technology in Teaching-Learning-Assessment processes, using a learning management system. In collaboration with Rama Krishna Mission Ashram, we designed a course on Values and Ethics, which is compulsory for all of our programs . In order to enhance our interface with industry, we constituted an Industry Council , consisting of Senior Managers from diverse industries in Jharkhand . The Council advises us on a continuous basis , how to bridge the industry academia gap. All of our students go through a course on Entrepreneurship and such of the students , aspiring to become entrepreneurs are groomed appropriately.

What are you doing towards upgrading the quality of the faculty, as the university has to be at par with the industry standards ? How is the faculty trained by university?
 Our faculty members go through Faculty Development Programs in areas like use of Technology in Pedagogy, latest developments in specific disciplines etc. They also take up Consultancy Projects and Research Studies in association with Industry Associations. They also organize industry-oriented seminars and workshops in association with industry.

JHARKHAND EYES Top Spot as Education Hub

By
Akash
-

Jharkhand government is working progressively on higher education and skill development sector. Our government will give skill development training to more than 20 lakh people in the next five years, says Raj Bala Verma, Chief Secretary, Government of Jharkhand in an exclusive tete-a-tete with Gautam Debroy of Elets News Network (ENN)

What is your strategy for the development of Jharkhand? We want to see Jharkhand amongst the top developed states in India. And I believe that industrial investment is a major necessity to bring such development. That is why we are trying to get more and more investors in our state. Jharkhand is rich in minerals and human resources, I believe, it is one such state that will attract investors not only from India but across the globe.
Jharkhand has vast industrial and physical infrastructure.We are focused in providing a friendly business environment and necessary infrastructure for the industries to establish and expand.
You have initiated road shows called Momentum Jharkhand. How has been the response? To attract investors in Jharkhand, we have done road shows in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai. We are getting good responses from all the road shows. We have received several proposals. We have already signed MoU with several private companies.
Through our road show in Mumbai, we have signed four MoUs in health sector and in IT sector we have signed three MoUs. The state government is also working in the right direction. With 40 percent mineral resources, I think, Jharkhand is prepared in the investment sectors.

In Mumbai, you have launched six policies on six different sectors. What are the characteristics of these policies?
In Mumbai, we have launched policies on Information Technology and IT Enabled Services (IT/ITeS), Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Startup (best start-up policy among seven leading states in terms of ecosystem incentives), Electronic Systems Design and Manufacturing (ESDM), Automobile and Auto Components (best in class incentives for OEMs and ancillaries) and Textiles and Footwear.
We have given special incentives under all these six policies. In startups policy we have given opportunities to the young entrepreneurs. We have given special importance on the handholding and mentoring of the young entrepreneurs.
As far as Textiles and Footwear Policy is concerned, we have abundant raw materials and silk along with presence of a good number of quality handloom weavers and looms. We also have adequate skilled manpower at reasonable price. Several incentives under Jharkhand Industrial Park Policy 2015 are also applicable to textile sector.

Jharkhand is lagging behind many states in higher education and skill sector. What is your take on this?
 It’s true, higher education and skill are the two major sectors, and we are really concerned with. It’s a fact that we are behind in these two sectors but under the leadership of Hon’ble Chief Minister we are trying to overcome the problems and take the state ahead in higher education and skill development sector. I am happy to inform you that our state government will give skill development training to more than 20 lakh people in the next five years. We are opening new colleges and universities in our state. In the last six months, we have opened three new private universities which includes Amity and Pragyan.

Jharkhand building strong relationship with private sector and experts…

Jharkhand government seeks to foster strong relationship with private sector and experts for transforming the state as knowledge power house of east India in the next five years, said Jharkhand Chief Secretary Raj Bala Verma at the 7th World Education Summit recently.
In a special address, she said the Indian higher education is going through a dramatic transformation driven by country’s economic and demographic change.
“This is very encouraging data. However, there are challenges also which we will need to address. These challenges mostly are the supply and demand gap,” she said.
Mentioning that the low quality of teaching and learning is another challenge pending to be addressed, the chief secretary said: “The system is beset with issues of quality. In many of its institution a chronic shortage of teachers, poor quality teaching, outdated and rigid curriculum, lack of accountability, quality assurance and there is no separation of teaching from research.”
Highlighting the challenge of uneven growth and access to opportunities, Verma said: “Socially, India remains highly divided. Access to higher education is uneven, with multi-dimensional inequalities, enrollment across population groups and geographies.
“In Jharkhand, we are trying to address the challenges. The government of Jharkhand is also working towards provisions of quality, education to all its residents. We are trying to build Jharkhand the knowledge hub for higher education.”
“We have passed the Private University Bill, formulated to attract private players in universities. To promote quality technical education in the state, the government has constructed engineering colleges, 14 polytechnique and all these are being run in the private public partnership. The state of Jharkhand is in the process of also setting up a medical city near Ranchi.”
Verma said the Jharkhand government is also committed to leverage the ICT to improve teaching, learning processes in classroom, online training modules, smart classes, teachers in service and before service training. “These are the areas where the private sector can step Jharkhand in a big way.”
“The Jharkhand government is open to suggestions and ideas to improve. We look forward to partnering with the private sector. The state has taken decisive and firm action to facilitate participation and engagement of private sector. There is a single window facilitation to fast track the time and approvals of the private investment in the state,” the chief secretary said.

In February, you are doing Investors Summit at Ranchi. What are your expectations from such Summit?
 We are all prepared to attract investors in Jharkhand. As I have told you earlier, we are giving special opportunities as well as incentives for the investors. We have created land banks so that the investors don’t face any problem as far as land requirement is concerned. We are expecting that investors from Indian and across the globe would definitely come and invest in the beautiful state of Jharkhand.
We have vast scope for mineral and mines based industries. In fact, we have already started getting good response in these two sectors. As far as Mumbai road show is concerned, we are expecting `60-70,000 crore investment opportunities including investment in power and cement plants.

What according to you at present is the biggest challenge for Jharkhand?
 Getting investors in itself is a very big challenge. But we are prepared with proper strategy and planning. We believe that with the support of everybody we can overcome this challenge. To attract new investments, it is crucial for a state to communicate to the business fraternity.

Jharkhand Set to Emerge as Education Hub

By
digitalLEARNING Network
-

Jharkhand Chief Minister, Raghubar Das shared plans of his government to improve the quality of education through teachers’ training and by encouraging skilloriented education in an interview with Arpit Gupta of Elets News Network (ENN). He also shared plans for improving the standard of higher education in the state.

How would you describe Jharkhand as a fast growing State and what makes it a perfect destination for investment?
Jharkhand is a land of unlimited opportunities and one of the richest states in the country. There is a huge opportunity for investment in all sectors including education, health, IT & Industries, agriculture, food processing, tourism etc. Our government has simplifi ed all our acts and policies, and created an investor-friendly environment in last one-and-a-half year tenure. Our economy is fast growing and offering new vistas of opportunities. Therefore, we are inviting national and international companies in our State to work in an exceptionally congenial business climate.
So far, we have drafted around 10 new policies to respond to investors concerns in the last one year. For IT and Startup Policy, the efforts are on and recently an advisory board meeting was held in Mumbai. The policy will be ready over a period of one month. Our emphasis has been on creating policies, which considers benefi ts of investors at the top priority.

indaiWhat are the top priorities of the Jharkhand Government?
Our top priority has been Gaon, Gareeb and Kisan (villages, poor and farmers). We believe that economy of our State will grow only when we will be able to ensure basic amenities such as education, health, water, and roads for people of the State. We are making sincere efforts to ensure aforementioned facilities are available at every nook and corner of the State.
We want to digitally literate at least one member of each family in the State. Therefore our government has rolled out e-Sakshar scheme. We are also planning to adopt e-Learning in the State. It will help students from far-flung areas connect with the professors of all subjects worldwide through internet.
Align with the vision of our Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are implementing the schemes like Digital India, Smart City Mission, Standup India, Startup India, Make in India, Swachh Bharat Mission etc. in our State.

What is the status of School and Higher Education in Jharkhand and how does your government seek to enhance the quality of education?
 The use of latest technology has made education easier. In this techno-savvy era, the role of teachers has metamorphosed from guide to facilitator. Now the time has come to change the scenario and the roots of primary or secondary education should be strengthened.

SCHOOL EDUCATION
We are doing capacity building of over one lakh teachers across schools in the State. Our literacy rate is very close to the national average. Literacy rate of 7+ yrs age-group students in the State is 67.6 per cent against the national average – 73 per cent while literacy rate of 15+ yrs age-group students in the State is 67.6 per cent against the national average – 69.3 per cent. Total Schools of Primary and Upper Primary education in the State are 43,219. However, as per national guidelines total number of schools should be 11,91,719.
We are trying to reduce the studentteacher ratio in primary and secondary education from 53:1 to 30:1. We are also establishing more Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) schools to reduce girl dropout. The Government has opened 57 Jharkhand Balika Awasiya Vidyalayas in remote blocks keeping in mind the Quality Education in low literacy and tribal dominated blocks.
For imparting quality education, the State Government has given the responsibility of running 89 government schools to DAV group and 29 tribal schools under Welfare Department to Shishu Vidya Mandir.

HIGHER EDUCATION
 The Government is making all out efforts to improve Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) in higher education track. It is currently 13.1 against the national average 23. The Government has set the target of 32 to achieve by 2022. The GER is low because there are very less number of educational institutes in the State. The population of 18-23 agegroup people is approx 37.9 lakh which is expected to touch 42.6 lakh by 2022. We have total 13 Universities – 7 Private, and 6 State, and total institutions/colleges 442. Additional colleges will be required to meet the State’s GER vision and meet national density of 26 colleges per lakh population 692.
Presently, we have 16 Engineering Colleges and 32 Polytechnic Institutes in the State. Additional 26 Engineering Colleges need to be opened to achieve national density of 1 per 7.7 lakh. Meanwhile, additional 80 polytechnic institutes will be required to achieve national density of one per three lakh.
We are opening new private universities as per the notified guidelines. Recently, three private universities – Amity, AISECT and Pragyan have been given clearances to set up their institutions.
We have also initiated enabling Wi-Fi campuses for college/institutions to promote ICT-based education. In the era of global economy and education and technology, the world scenario is changing rapidly. Now students can connect worldwide with any university of repute through Internet.

Our top priority has been Gaon, Gareeb and Kisan (villages, poor and farmers). We believe that economy of our State will grow only when we will be able to ensure basic amenities

What has been done for the Skill Development by the government and how will it contribute to the growth of State’s economy?
Skill Development is another focus of the Jharkhand Government and Government of India. This is for the first time after independence that a Prime Minister showed concern about providing employment to the unemployed youth of ‘under-rated’ State.
The Government of Jharkhand has decided to impart skills and train around 20 lakh youth over a period of five years in the sectors like Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Industry and MSME, Health, Paramedics, Infrastructure, Road and Transport, Tourism, Power and Utilities, Water and Environment and Banking and Financial services.
We are in the process of setting up of 50 Mega Skill Development Centres. We are inviting private players for partnership to build Skill Development Centres in existing academic institutions (Higher, Technical and ITI institutions).
Besides, we have taken significant steps for Skill Development and announced in the recent budget that skill education will be incorporated in the syllabus of class 9th and 10th. Our objective is to skill the students at a tender age so that they do not face hardship in getting jobs after their professional studies.

Shri Raghubar Das’ Special Address during 7th World Education Summit

“The economic reformation that occurred in 1991 led to global economy concept arriving in our country. It affected mainly two aspects more than the others – medical and education.
“In everyday life, we notice the rich enjoy the luxury of good hospitals and admission in good schools. But the have-nots have to study in government schools. A cursory glance on education sector after 1991 (economic reforms) reveals that the standard of education has witnessed a decline in government schools.
“The much-needed attention that such schools deserved from political leadership of that period was found missing. This is our failure. I feel the prevalence of vote-bank politics is to be blamed for the ills of education in government schools. Since the kids are not vote bank, the focus on primary or secondary education was not given.
“A tree cannot have a proper growth till it has strong roots. This is the reason why a big question mark exists on our education system.
“Various commissions suggested transforming the education system. Still we haven’t achieved that stage of change. Any state or country having a good education system or dissemination of education will have a good economy as well.
it business or education.
“Our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has repeatedly laid stress on importance of technology and encouraged its use to the hilt. This can ensure a transparent and accountable administration. “With maximum use of technology, transformation is being ensured across the world. We also need to ensure it takes place in our country and universities.
“Today any individual can connect himself with other students or top class global universities in other part of the world. Through Internet students sitting in classrooms are enjoying high class education from different places. In such a developed educational environment, teachers have turned facilities in place of being trainers. We must use this technology as much as it is possible.
“I feel due to professional education or the private universities, there has been a lot of improvement in the education sector. It is also because private universities enjoy liberty to employ quality professors. They can have a faculty of present time which can enable our children capable of being employable after competing studies.
“Our government will fully support private universities to strengthen the education sector. Since education is the backbone of anybody’s personality, we need to ensure our children of Jharkhand are capable to face challenges of this global economy.
“Amity University is already working in Jharkhand’s higher education sector. I call upon educational institutes to come to Jharkhand in education sector as the state is full of possibilities. Apart from industry and Information Technology, field of education hold big latent potential.
“Ranchi is a place that already enjoys a recognition in education field. I appeal to all educational institutes to open private universities in our Jharkhand. Our government will extend all support to you. I hope the central government will also focus on Jharkhand. If you, the educationists, provide education in Jharkhand, due to presence of other facilities, the youth will get employment there itself.”

Industry – Academia tie-up
 Recently, the State Government has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CISCO and Oracle as a step towards industry academia tie-up and course integration in Jharkhand. We have signed MoUs with premier in stitutes and global companies to impart skills to youth and for expansion of IT sector.

 

Building Knowledge – Based Society

By
digitalLEARNING Network
-

The endeavour has been to create a knowledge-based society in the country by imparting quality education and research, says M N Raju, Chairman, The MNR Group of Institutions, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN)

How would you like to build on the success of your group legacy?
 With the successful running of academic and professional institutions for decades, we are now going for NAAC accreditation as per norms. We have already submitted proposals to UGC for Deemed University status to our Medical College at Sangareddy, Greater Hyderabad.

We are also spreading our educational activities to Dubai and Sharjah. We have already started MNR Talent and Skill Development Institute in Dubai.

In our schools we have been implementing about 28 types of co-curricular and extra-curricular activities which are properly recorded and evaluated from time to time.

What innovations have been brought about by your institutions in education space?
Various innovative practices brought about in our educational institutions to make learning more meaningful such as using technological devices to add a more meaningful audio-visual component to ensure effective learning in the classroom, Active Learning Projects (ALPs) devised to make the students thinking, talking and sharing information in the classroom.

Instead of Computer-supported Learning, new forums of Socio-Digital Participation are resorted to, including media literacy such as using social media and search engine.

For measuring the student learning outcomes, common formats are developed class-wise and course-wise. They are used so that the similarities and differences are transparent to students, parents and the teachers.

Opportunities are provided in every institution and students are encouraged to develop their creative abilities.

Social Service camps are organised institution-wise so as to develop in students the right attitude of working for social welfare.

What is your view about the new Education Policy being formulated?
 The 1969 National Policy on Education had stipulated a review of progress in every five years. But such periodical reviews did not take place as stipulated. Afterwards the Review of National Policy on Education (NPE), National Curriculum Frame Work for School Education 2000 and National Curriculum Framework 2005 have been formulated.

Now, once again discussions are on for revising the National Policy on Education suitable to the present day scenario.

While the various aspects relating to School Education in National Policy are a little bit better, the aspects relating to collegiate and University Education are very disheartening. Some of the suggestions that may help may include considerations like:
Doing away with the affiliated college system, need for consolidation by merging and clustering of Universities and colleges to achieve effective intellectual exchange, concept of cluster of colleges envisaged by the National Knowledge Commission be given a shape, a new way of regulating Higher Education that promotes both autonomy and accountability and fosters private investment is required.

What was the vision behind opening MNR Group?
 The vision was to create a knowledge-driven Indian society through quality education and research.

What opportunities are there for your institutions to operate on the global stage?
MNR Talent and Skill Development Institute (MNR TSDI) has been functioning in Dubai catering to the Talent and Skill Development of clients (Students) from several countries. It is run in collaboration with various agencies like IIM-Ahmedabad, IIM-Bangalore, ISB-Hyderabad, AAOIFL- Bahrain, CIBAFI-Bahrain, TAFE- UK guild and so on.

What are the main strengths of the collegiate system? Strengths of the collegiate system of education include transitioning from teenage to adulthood, offering an opportunity for every student who joins the college course to take charge of the direction in which the individual shapes his / her life and it makes the individual students learn the ways of effective Time Management.

Telangana Zeroing – In On Employment Generation

By
digitalLEARNING Network
-

Telangana is one of the rapidly growing states in the country and its capital city of Hyderabad has emerged as a major IT hub. The state government is focusing on employment generation by zeroing-in on specifi c sectors. Dr. Rajat Kumar, Principal Secretary, Labour, Employment, Training and Factories Department, gives insight on the state’s potential areas in an exclusive interview with Sudheer Goutham of Elets News Network (ENN).

Tell us about the growth story of Telangana state through skill development and employment training?
 Besides IT and ITES (Information Technology Enabled Services), health and construction sector have seen major growth in the state as a result of intensive skill training initiatives taken up by the Telangana government. Many of the ministries have taken up skill development programmes simultaneously on their own. For instance, Rural Development Department identifi es capable youth and trains them in skills that suit the rural sector. At the apex level, a body, the Telangana Skill Development Mission has been created with Hon’ble Chief Minister as its Chairman, that works with partner training institutions. Also, Telangana Academy for Skill & Knowledge (TASK) and T-Hub has been established for IT skill development and IT entrepreneurship. Under state labour department we have modular employability skills training that continued till recently and also in the Prime Minister’s programme on entrepreneurship number of schemes have been launched through which we are fulfi lling domestic demand and also becoming international feeder, given the quality and on-job training given here.

Telangana holds great potential of supplying skills as we are already delivering human force with good skills in places like Middle East countries and Singapore. We want to extend it further.

school-education-dr-neeta-bali31Did the state government give any mandate to the labour department in particular for generating employment, as it was one of the primary promises of ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) party’s poll manifesto?
Yes, one of the TRS’s major promises was employment creation and skill development. It was this need which led to the formation of Telangana state that rooted from decades old exploitation under several external forces. However, not just the labour department or the ministry in particular, other ministries were given mandates for employment creation and skill development programmes which are specifi c. Skill development covers a whole gamut of sectors. To avoid duplication of training, track the status of the individuals after training and improve on other parameters, Skill Development Ministry was created by Government of India. Labour Department as the state nodal agency for these programmes liaisons with Center to get convergence of various programmes regionally.

What are the other areas in focus of the state government for job creation?
 Hyderabad has the advantage of having near 100 national and international training and research institutes including ICRISAT, CCMB, NIN, DRDO, National Academy of Construction and many other private institutes. The Government is taking full advantage of these institutions. Potential areas like construction sector that covers a wide-range of skilled workers including construction, plumbing, carpentry, glass, electrical work and others that need specialised skills; health sector with great demand of skilled nurses, paramedics and doctors in the backdrop of rapidly growing health sector for economic healthcare; manufacturing sector- besides IT, ITEs, electronics, pharmaceuticals, aeronautical, automobile among others that require skilled workers are in focus of the state government. In the process, we are encouraging the employers through tie ups to come and participate in the skill training of individuals. Major thrust is on on-job-training as every employer has their own requirements. Fortunately, many of the employers are in and around Hyderabad only.

Leveraging Technology monitoring progress

By
digitalLEARNING Network
-

Understanding the importance of critical and analytical thinking for a student’s career, the Telangana education department takes a step beyond monitoring attendance, punctuality of students and teachers using technology. CCE, Government of Telangana is coming up with a disruptive initiative that keeps a regular check on teaching and learning between teachers and students. T Vijay Kumar, Joint Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Government of Telangana, tells more in an interaction with Sudheer Goutham of Elets News Network (ENN)

Tell us about the initiative that has been taken by the Telangana Commissionerate of Collegiate Education to check on the learning and teaching in the higher education. How the idea was envisaged?
High order thinking and problem solving ing skills are crucial to a student’s career that will help students to go places. In order to bridge the gap between effective learning and teaching in the existing ecosystem of higher education, our team came up with the progress-monitoring tool. Besides the existing monitor solving of attendance, regularity through biometric system, a mobile app will be introduced for the students (As most of the students have mobile phone and other gadgets with them). Periodically, based on the subject and classes covered, the app will automatically generate set of questions every fortnight for the students to answer. We will encourage students to attempt answering the questions that are in objective type format. This will help us update on learning that has happened in the classes. Every fortnight the assessment will be done by a dedicated team that will check for the gaps between the teaching and learning. If learning by students is poor, then we would ensure that staff is trained accordingly for effective teaching and other necessary steps. This will also help in engaging students in establishing and tracking personalized learning goals and objectives. Our team would help in setting objectives and providing feedback.

How are the questions generated in the progress monitoring app please explain?
Question bank is uploaded in the server and based on the subject that is covered in class, the system will generate questions that will be available on the Mobile App. Every student, with the mobile app, will get a different set of questions from others in the class.

What is the current status of this initiative?
To begin with, the project will be taken up as a pilot in the government degree colleges to capture the level of learning among the students of a class. It will also help in assessing the workload to the teaching and non-teaching staff and get feedback from the stake holders. There are a total of 1131 government, private, private-aided and university degree colleges in Telangana state. Of the total, 130 are government degree colleges.

Will you make this progress monitoring tool a mandate in the private colleges too?
We have created the tool that will be developed further and shared with the universities, which will ultimately take the call. We will engage the universities for hands on training to use the tool.

What is the cost that involves in implementing the initiative in each college?
It is a cloud-based initiative which doesn’t involve much cost for colleges

Jharkhand Moots Strategy for Higher, Technical Education & Skill Development

By
Akash
-

With a new set of policies and incentives, the Jharkhand government is geared up to bring a drastic change in the higher, technical and skill development sector. Aware of its limitations, the government has started luring private players. Apart from giving single window clearance to investors, the government has also decided to allocate 10 acres of land for single disciplinary university and provision of endowment fund of `2 crore. The government has also signed MoUs with a few prominent players to ensure a visible transformation, write Gautam Debroy and Akash Tomer of Elets News Network (ENN).

Inspite of several challenges, the Jharkhand government is determined to bring a U-turn in its higher, technical education and skill development sector.
Inspite of several challenges, the Jharkhand government is determined to bring a U-turn in its higher, technical education and skill development sector.
Under the leadership of Chief Minister Raghubar Das, the state, which is lagging far behind vis-à-vis national average, has taken several initiatives to boost up this promising sector of higher, technical education and skill development.
jharkhand_mootsAdmitting the fact, Jharkhand Chief Secretary Raj Bala Verma has said her government is trying to overcome the problems and take the state ahead in higher education and skill development sector.
“It’s true, higher education and skill are the two major sectors, we are really concerned about. But we are trying to overcome these problems. We are opening new colleges and universities in our state. In fact, in the last six months, we have opened three new private universities including Amity, Pragyan and ISEC. We have decided to give skill development training to over 20 lakh people in the state in five years,” said Verma.
Against the national average of 23 Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER), Jharkhand register only 13 GER. In terms of higher education colleges, the state has college population index of 8 against the national average of 23.
“For us, at present, the biggest challenge is to increase the GER. It is 13 and we need to take it to 32 by 2022,” said Ajoy Kumar Singh, Secretary, Department of Higher, Technical Education and Skill development.
To match the national average, Jharkhand requires 692 national colleges. Similarly, the state requires 80 polytechnic colleges and 26 engineering colleges to match the national average.
The state government, thus, has planned to construct and open over 100 new engineering, degree and polytechnic colleges in near future and set some notified model guidelines to lure private participation in the sector.
124As a first step towards solving some of the serious problems in this sector, the government is giving opportunities and incentives to private universities to come and invest in Jharkhand.
In Jharkhand, there are several advantages in the higher education and skill development sectors. The state has been ranked as 5th Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) destination in India. It has also been ranked as No. 3 State, by DIPP, in terms of doing business is concerned. The state has recorded 10.5 per cent GSDP growth rate-second fastest in eastern India.
To have technology-enabled quality education, the department of higher education and skill development, has already taken several initiatives for making the colleges and university campus Wi-Fi enabled.
In the first phase, as many as five university and 30 colleges will come under this project. “We are also planning to upload video and audio lectures on website. Further, we are also in the process of building e-library,” said Ajoy Kumar Singh.

Initiatives in Higher Education:
1. Opening New Universities
2. Setting up of Wi-Fi campuses and Digital library in all universities
3. Setting up of Industry promoted Centre of Excellences
4. Establishing campuses of foreign universities/technical institutions

Initiatives in Technical Education:
1. Opening New Engineering / Polytechnic colleges
2. Management of colleges on PPP mode
3. Development of COEs and t-SDIs for Skill Development

Initiatives in Skill Development:
1. Forging partnership for Skill Development Centers in existing institutions
2. Setting up of 50 Mega Skill Development Centres
3. Setting up of Entrepreneurship Development Fund (EDF)
Industry-friendly education is also a big challenge in Jharkhand. “There is a huge gap between industry requirements and what we are teaching on colleges. Students who passed out are not getting jobs,” said Singh.
To overcome the problem, the department of higher, technical education and skill development has taken initiatives of changing the course curriculum.
“We have instructed varsities to change the curriculum so that we can bridge the gap between industry and academic. We are also encouraging tie-ups between universities and industries,” said Secretary Singh.
Significantly, the state government has already signed MoU with some of the prominent private companies including Cisco, Oracle, Tata. These companies will be bringing new software, technology and solutions to provide better education in the state.
“It will enable students to get immediate jobs after completing their courses,” he added.
The department is also incorporating skill development certificate courses in the colleges. “These courses will get integrated in our education system s that students studying in regular courses can get relevant hands on experience to help them while working in industry,” he said.
In the last budget, the Jharkhand government announced to incorporate skill education in the syllabus of class 9th and 10th standards to ensure students are skilled from early age and don’t face problems to get a job.
To give an impetus to the several initiatives taken by the department of higher, technical and skill development, the present leadership has initiated a vigorous movement named Momentum Jharkhand–the investment destination.
The Jharkhand government is organising road shows in and across India and abroad to attract investors in this sector.
jharkhand_moots1The government, according to the officials, has already received several proposals in the field of higher education and skill development. It has already given approval to eight private universities whereas three more are in the pipeline including Arka Jain University Capital University and JIS University.
Recently, these three universities have also written to the higher education department seeking necessary and required approvals.
By setting the ball rolling in the higher education and skill development sector, Raghubar Das government is all set to play forward and take the State at its peak.

125Jharkhand’s rise as Education-cum -Training Hub
Jharkhand’s Skill Policy was formulated with a focus on the following key areas to meet the vision of the state:
? Assessment of Skill Gap
? Spread Awareness
? Organizational capacity building
? To strengthen the Policy Making bodies
? Empanelment of Skill Training Providers.
? National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF)
? Additional Skill Acquisition Program & Introduction of Skill Management
? Information System Convergence of Skill programs
? Encourage Industry Initiatives

The State Government has signed Memorandum of Understanding with CISCO and Oracle as a step towards industry academia tie-up and course integration in Jharkhand. Jharkhand Government has also received proposals from Siemens, PTC and Samsung to setup Centre of Excellence (COEs) in the State.
Training Wing of Directorate of Employment & Training under Department of Labour, Employment & Training imparts vocational training in engineering & non-engineering trades to the youth through a network of 22 government and 148 private ITIs, spread across the state. Presently training is imparted in 42 engineering and non engineering trades. The installed capacity of government and private ITIs taken together is around 29,500. n

1...719720721...1,749Page 720 of 1,749

LATEST NEWS

EDITOR PICKS

POPULAR POSTS

POPULAR CATEGORY

© Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.