Ukraine-returned Indian Medical Students Given One-time Option to Clear MBBS Exam
The Centre informed Supreme Court that students who returned to India from Ukraine will be given a single opportunity to clear the MBBS final exams -- both Part I and Part II exams (both theory and practical), without enrolling in any existing medical colleges.
According to the Centre, after clearing these two examinations, students will have to complete two years of compulsory rotatory internship, with the first year being free and the second year being paid, as decided by the National Medical Commission (NMC) for previous cases.
The decision was made by a committee set up by the Centre to address the concerns of these students. The committee has emphasised that this will be strictly a one-time option and will not become a basis for similar decisions in the future. The scheme shall be applicable to present matters only.
Around 9000 Schools Shortlisted for PM SHRI Scheme
Around 9,000 schools from across India were shortlisted for the Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) programme.
The schools were selected from over 2.5 lakh government schools, including Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Vidyalayas, which were found eligible to apply for the tag.
The selection process was based on six broad parameters, including curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment; access and infrastructure; human resources leadership; inclusive practices and gender equity; management, monitoring, and governance; and beneficiary satisfaction.
The PM SHRI programme is a new centrally sponsored scheme that aims to develop more than 14,500 schools across the country by strengthening select existing schools being managed by all forms of governments.
The PM SHRI schools aim to deliver quality teaching for the cognitive development of students and create and nurture well-rounded individuals equipped with key 21st-century skills.
Mar 28, 2023
IIT Kanpur, Boehringer Ingelheim India Join Hands to Eradicate Tuberculosis
The Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT-K) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Boehringer Ingelheim India, a global pharmaceutical company. This collaboration was carried on the Start-up Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC), the technology business incubator of IIT-K.
As a part of this new collaboration, Boehringer Ingelheim will provide support to Lenek Technologies, one of the start-ups incubated at SIIC, IIT Kanpur.
This start-up company of IIT-K has developed a handheld X-ray device, through which Lenek Technologies aims to eradicate Tuberculosis (TB) by improving the screening process. Experts are hoping that this will bring about a significant change in TB screening in areas where resources are limited.
The collaboration will focus on socially beneficial innovations that can drive transformational change in the healthcare industry.
Mar 27, 2023
AICTE lifts Ban on New Engineering Colleges after 3 Years
Three years after it was first introduced, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) lifted its ban on new engineering colleges. The Council also scrapped the minimum land requirement criterion for starting a new college or running an existing one.
In January 2019, in an unprecedented move the technical education regulator had decided to not approve new engineering colleges from the academic year 2020-21 and review the creation of new capacity every two years. However, there were a few exceptions to the ban. Existing engineering institutes were allowed to start new programmes in new technologies or convert current capacity in traditional engineering branches to emerging new technology areas such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, robotics, quantum computing, data sciences, cyber security and 3D printing.
This ban was introduced keeping in mind the low enrolments in engineering and diploma programmes across the country.
IIT Kanpur, University of Buffalo Collaborate for Research in Biomedicine, Bioengineering
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur (IIT-K) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (Mou) with the University of Buffalo for research collaboration in the field of Biomedicine and Bioengineering.
Under this agreement, the two varsities agreed to establish the IITK-UB Joint Centre of Excellence in Biomedicine and Bioengineering at IIT Kanpur premises. This centre of excellence will facilitate long-term collaborations in education and research between IIT Kanpur and University at Buffalo, as well as other institutions.
The research centre will focus on developing materials and technologies for both in vitro (studies performed with cells) and in vivo (studies performed with animals) applications in biosciences.
Mar 23, 2023
QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023: IIT-Delhi Enters Top 50 Club
The Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi entered the list of top 50 institutions for engineering in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023.
As many as 44 programmes offered by Indian higher education institutions in different disciplines have figured in the top 100 globally. Last year, 35 Indian programmes made it to the top 100.
The rankings provide independent comparative analysis on the performance of more than 15,700 individual programmes taken by students at 1,594 universities in 93 locations across the world, across 54 academic disciplines and five broad faculty areas.
ICAR and WB Host International Conference on Blended Learning in Agriculture Education
Indian Council of Agriculture Research and World Bank jointly hosted International Conference on Blended Learning Ecosystem for Higher Education in Agriculture 2023. The conference was held from March 21 to March 23, 2023 as a part of the National Agricultural Higher Education Project's (NAHEP) Resilient Agricultural Education System (RAES) development initiative.
The NAHEP initiative has more than ten academic partners from around the world representing over ten countries deliberating on the best strategies in blended teaching and learning in agricultural education. NAHEP is a five-year project initiated in 2018 with an aim to transform agricultural higher education.
The 3-day conference was organised to identify the best strategies in blended teaching and learning, Technologies for Blended Learning, Sustainability in the Blended Learning Ecosystem, Building Stakeholder Capacities to Navigate in a Blended Teaching – Learning Ecosystem and Contemporary Curriculum for Agricultural Education.
RBI's Data Centre and Cybersecurity Training Institute to Come up in Bhubaneswar
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das laid the foundation stone for establishment of a "Greenfield Data Centre' and 'Enterprise Computing & Cybersecurity Training Institute' in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
The new Data Centre and the Enterprise Computing & Cybersecurity Training Institute will cater to the emerging requirements of the RBI and the financial sector.
Das acknowledged the critical role played by technology in supporting the activities of the financial sector and the RBI over the years.
Mar 22, 2023
Deakin University Becomes First Foreign University to Set Up its International Branch Campus in I...
The Deakin University, which is a premier University in Australia, became the 1st foreign university to receive approval of the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) to set up an International Branch Campus (IBC) in GIFT-IFSC, GIFT City, Gujarat.
Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Union Budget 2022-23 had announced that "World Class Foreign Universities and Institutions will be allowed in the GIFT City to offer courses in Financial Management, FinTech, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, free from domestic regulations, except those by the IFSCA to facilitate availability of high-end human resources for financial services and technology".
The IFSCA has granted in-principle approval to Deakin University based on the recommendation of the Committee of Experts set up by the GIFT City Company Limited. By virtue of this approval, Deakin University will be able to offer the same degree courses it offers in Australia in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Financial Management in GIFT IFSC to both Indian and foreign students. The degree offered shall be identical or similar to that offered in the home jurisdiction.
IIT Kanpur, University of California Join Hands for Research Collaborations
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur signed a Memorandum of Understanding (Mou) with the University of California, Santa Cruz, USA (UCSC) for joint academic and research collaborations.
Under this collaboration, the two institutes will join hands to conduct research in several areas such as in computer science and engineering, artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science, bioinformatics, biotechnology, among others.
Students of both institutes will get the opportunities to share their expertise, knowledge, and resources to further research and development in these fields. Under this joint venture, the two institutes will also provide opportunities to researchers of the two institutes to collaborate on important research initiatives.