Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a three-day Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samagam in Varanasi on Thursday, organized by the Ministry of Education in association with University Grants Commission (UGC) and Banaras Hindu University.
According to the Ministry of Education, the three-day seminars will bring together over 300 Vice-Chancellors and Directors from public and private universities, educationists, policymakers, as also industry representatives to deliberate on how the implementation of National Education Policy 2020 can be taken further across the country after successful implementation of several initiatives in the last two years. Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will also be present on the occasion.
“The Summit will provide a platform for leading Indian Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) to discuss, deliberate and share insights on strategies, success stories and best practices in implementing the National Education Policy, 2020,” the Education Ministry said in a statement.
The Ministry, along with UGC and AICTE, has brought in several policy initiatives like Academic Bank of Credit, Multiple Entry-Exit, Multi disciplinarity and Flexibility in higher education, regulations aimed at boosting online and open distance learning, revising the National Curriculum Framework to make it more in sync with global standards, promoting multi linguality and Indian Knowledge Systems and making both a part of educational curriculum, mainstreaming skill education and promoting lifelong learning, to name a few.
The ministry further said that many universities have already onboarded the reform train, but there are still many who are yet to adopt and adapt to the changes. As the higher education ecosystem in the country spans centre, states and private entities, extensive consultations are required to take the policy implementation further.
“This process of consultation has been going on at the regional and national levels. Prime Minister addressed a seminar of Chief Secretaries in Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh last month where states shared their insights on the issue. The Varanasi Shiksha Samagam is next in the series of consultations in this regard,” the ministry said.
Spanning several sessions spread over three days from July 7 to 9, discussions will be held on themes such as Multidisciplinary and Holistic Education, Skill Development and Employability, Indian Knowledge Systems, Internationalization of Education, Digital Empowerment and Online Education, Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Quality, Ranking and Accreditation, Equitable and Inclusive Education, Capacity Building of Teachers for Quality Education.
The Summit is expected to provide a platform for thought-provoking discussions that will articulate the roadmap and implementation strategies, foster knowledge exchange and build networks through interdisciplinary deliberations and discuss challenges being faced by educational institutions and articulate solutions.
The key highlight of the Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samagam will be the adoption of the Varanasi Declaration on Higher Education which will showcase India’s extended vision and a renewed commitment to help achieve the goals of the higher education system, it added.