By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 14 Aug: MoUs were signed between the State Higher Education Department and the British High Commission as well as with Infosys Springboard at a function held today at the CM’s Residence in the presence of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
On behalf of the Higher Education Department, Secretary Shailesh Bagoli signed MoUs with Deputy High Commissioner of Britain in India Caroline Rowett, and Santosh Ananthapura, Head of Government Partnerships for Chevening Scholarship and Infosys Springboard.
On this occasion, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the MoUs of the state higher education department with the British High Commission and Infosys Springboard will usher in an era in the field of higher education in the state. This will result in a new experience for the students of higher education. He added that this is an important step towards connecting the state with the international education system. The CM claimed that the state government is constantly bringing new schemes aimed at qualitative improvement in higher education. Many action plans are being worked on so that the youth do not sit idle after higher studies. He said that, in accordance with the National Education Policy 2020, skill development training and seminars are also being organised in higher educational institutions.
Dhami said that free courses of science and technology will also be run in universities in the state soon. Along with education, students are also being connected with innovation. He emphasised that culture and innovation play an important role in education. The Higher Education Department in Uttarakhand is playing an important role in continuously developing the human resources of the state and many efforts are being made in this direction.
Higher Education Minister Dr Dhan Singh Rawat shared at the meeting that there are 35 universities in the state, while more than 5 lakh students are pursuing higher education. He claimed that continuous work is being done to promote higher education. The government is working to bring the universities of the state into the top ranking. The educational level of the children is also being significantly raised. All possible efforts are being made towards improving the level of higher education so that, by next year, five universities of the state can get into the list of the top 100 universities of the country
The objective of theChevening Uttarakhand Scholarship (a British scholarship) is to provide global opportunities to poor meritorious students of remote areas, especially girl students, and to develop leadership skills. Under the Higher Education Department, five students studying in the state university and government colleges of the state and having eligibility for Chevening Scholarship will be sent every year to a reputed university in Britain for postgraduate studies. The government claims that this will not only give the students studying in remote areas of Uttarakhand the experience of working according to global standards, but will also help develop leadership skills in them. Under this scholarship, the students selected for studies will be required to work for the development of their state after studying for 1 year in Britain. Under this proposed cooperation and agreement, the expenditure to be incurred will be equally borne by Chevening and the state government.
On the other hand, Springboard Infosys will provide IT based free training modules for teachers and free courses for students under CSR on its virtual platform. The courses will be selected as per the New Education Policy (NEP). This training can also be taken up by the students as an optional course. Using this module, teachers can create microsites for the students of their institution and provide specially selected content to them. Through this, courses on latest emerging technologies will also be accessible to students, whose continuous monitoring and student progress can be seen through the dashboard.
On this occasion, Vice Chairman of Higher Education Upgradation Committee Dr Devendra Bhasin, Secretary, Higher Education, Shailesh Bagauli, Director, Higher Education, Professor Dr Anju Agarwal, Deputy Director Dr Mamta, Assistant Director Dr Deepak Kumar Pandey and other officials were among those present.
