Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 26 Jul: The Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC), Uttaranchal University, successfully organised the “Himalayan Bodh – 3rd All-India IQAC Workshop 2026” on Saturday at the Swami Vivekananda Auditorium, here, in hybrid mode. The national workshop brought together eminent academicians, policymakers, industry experts, researchers, Vice-Chancellors, Directors, Principals, IQAC Coordinators, faculty members and higher education administrators from 23 States and Union Territories to deliberate on Outcome-Based Education (OBE), National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, accreditation, sustainability, artificial intelligence, research integrity, internationalisation and future-ready higher education.
The workshop was organised with the objective of strengthening institutional quality assurance mechanisms and promoting academic excellence, innovation, sustainability and global engagement in alignment with the vision of NEP 2020 and Viksit Bharat 2047.
Welcoming the gathering, Er Rajesh Deorari, Director, Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC), highlighted the objectives of the workshop and emphasised that quality assurance, accreditation, digital transformation, sustainability and responsible adoption of emerging technologies have become indispensable for building globally competitive higher education institutions.
Present at the inaugural session were University President Jitender Joshi; Ankita Joshi, Vice President; Dr Abhishek Joshi, Executive Director, Student Affairs & IT Services; Prof Dharam Buddhi, Vice-Chancellor; and Prof Rajesh Bahuguna, Pro Vice-Chancellor, along with Deans, Directors, Principals, Heads of Departments, University officials and faculty members. Addressing the participants, the University leadership reaffirmed Uttaranchal University’s commitment to academic excellence, research, innovation, institutional quality, multidisciplinary education, sustainability and international engagement.
The Chief Guest, Prof TG Sitharam, former Chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), joined the programme virtually due to unavoidable circumstances. In his keynote address, he emphasised that excellence in higher education must be driven by innovation, quality assurance, institutional leadership, multidisciplinary education, research excellence and international collaboration.
Dr Meenakshi Sood from National Institute of Technical Teachers’ Training and Research (NITTTR), Chandigarh, delivered the first technical session on “Integrating Outcome-Based Education (OBE), National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and Accreditation.”
The second technical session was jointly delivered by Dr Livleen K Kahlon and Dr PK Bhattacharya from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), New Delhi, on “Promoting Green Campuses among Higher Education Institutions and Community Engagement for Sustainable Development.”
The third technical session was delivered by Dr Rajesh Dey, Taylor & Francis, on “Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence in Research and Publishing.”
The fourth technical session featured Dr Bapi Chatterjee, Infosys Centre for Artificial Intelligence, IIIT Delhi, who spoke on “Foundations of Artificial Intelligence for Teaching Pedagogy and Research.”
The final technical session was delivered by Prof Rajeev Kumar Singh, Shiv Nadar University – Institution of Eminence, on “Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Higher Education.”
The Valedictory Session featured a virtual address by Dr B Shadrach, Director, Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (COL-CEMCA), who appreciated Uttaranchal University’s initiative in creating a national platform for dialogue on quality assurance and institutional excellence.
A major highlight of the programme was the Exchange of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between StudyIn and the Office of International Affairs, Uttaranchal University, aimed at strengthening international academic collaboration, student mobility, faculty exchange and global learning opportunities.
On the successful conclusion of the workshop, Er Rajesh Deorari, Director, IQAC, expressed his gratitude to the University leadership, resource persons, sponsors, collaborating organisations and participants for their support.
The vote of thanks was proposed by Dr Madhu Kirola, Associate Professor, Uttaranchal Institute of Technology.
