UGC Announces New Fee Refund Policy for Higher Education Institutions
Amid ongoing grievances from students and parents over Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) failing to refund fees upon admission cancellations or withdrawals, the University Grants Commission (UGC) unveiled a robust fee refund policy for the academic session 2024-25.
During its 580th meeting, the UGC decided that HEIs must provide a full refund of fees for all cancellations or migrations of students up to September 30. A nominal processing fee of no more than Rs 1,000 will be deducted for refunds processed up to October 31, 2024.
This policy applies to all HEIs established or incorporated under Central or State Acts, as well as those recognised by the UGC under Section 2(f) of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956.
It also includes institutions deemed to be universities under Section 3 of the same Act, and all HEIs affiliated with a university.
IIT Kharagpur Appoints Rintu Banerjee as Institute's First Woman Deputy Director
Rintu Banerjee was appointed as the Deputy Director of the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. Banerjee, as per a statement, is the first woman to take over the charge of this position. With a career spanning various important portfolios, she has made significant contributions in the field of biotechnology.
Banerjee is the founder head and is presently the chairperson of P. K. Sinha Centre for Bioenergy and Renewables. She has also served as the Head of the Centre for Rural Development, Innovative and Sustainable Technology and Head of the Department of Agricultural & Food Engineering at IIT Kharagpur for three years.
In a significant move to enhance research culture, innovation, and technical education, the Chairman of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), Prof. T.G. Sitharam, officially launched the AICTE Post-Doctoral Fellowship (PDF) Scheme for 2024.
Prof. Sitharam highlighted the scheme's goal of fostering a robust research culture and advancing knowledge within AICTE-approved institutions.
The scheme will award 200 fellowships annually. The fellowship tenure is initially one year with extension of one more year. The scheme covers all areas under the purview of AICTE including Engineering and Technology, Management, Design, Planning, Applied Arts, Crafts and Design, Applied Sciences, Computer Application, Hotel Management and Catering Technology, and Interdisciplinary Areas.
Jun 13, 2024
Wadhwani Foundation Partners with Top Institutes to Boost Innovation Hubs in India
The Wadhwani Foundation, in a significant move, signed MoUs with AICTE, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Kanpur, IIT Hyderabad, IISc Bangalore, and C-CAMP to establish Wadhwani Innovation Network Centres of Excellence (WIN-COEs) to accelerate the commercialisation of academic innovations.
This partnership aims to transform academic and laboratory research by Indian faculty, students, and researchers into real-world applications that can be sold, used, or implemented in various industries, thus creating long-term economic value, and benefiting society. Currently, less than 1 per cent of higher education institutes in India are engaged in research.
UP Government Schools to Send Student Results via Mobile from New Session
In a significant move aimed at enhancing communication between schools and parents, the Uttar Pradesh government decided that from the upcoming academic session, parents of children enrolled in government primary and upper primary schools will receive their wards' results directly on their mobile phones. This decision was made during an executive committee meeting of Samagra Shiksha, chaired by Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra.
This initiative will benefit approximately 1.9 crore students enrolled in government schools under the Basic Shiksha Parishad.
Under the Operation Kayakalp initiative, the past five years have seen significant improvements in school infrastructure and the provision of attractive learning materials. The current focus is on enhancing the quality of education. The committee also gave in-principle approval for the introduction of smart classes in 3,530 upper primary and composite schools and the establishment of ICT labs in 1,515 such schools.
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham top Indian varsity in Times Higher Education University Impact Ranking...
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham was placed at the 81st position in the Times Higher Education (THE) University Impact Rankings 2024 announced, in June. Australia's Western Sydney University bagged the top position by scoring 99.7 overall marks followed by United Kingdom's University of Manchester and Australia's University of Tasmania with 98.5 overall marks.
Beyond 100, THE Impact Rankings 2024 does not assign individual ranks but places institutions in brackets instead.
Several Indian universities and institutions made it to the list of THE Impact Rankings 2024. JSS Academy of Higher Education, Lovely Professional University, Manipal Academy of Higher Education and Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences were placed at 101-200 rank slab.
While BS Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology, KIIT University and Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences were ranked among the 201-300 category, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Gandhinagar got 301-400 rank and IIT Guwahati was ranked at 401-500.
IIM Mumbai (previously called NITIE) ranked under the 601-800 belt. Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), one of the top universities in India, also bagged a position in the 901-1000 rank.
THE University Impact Rankings for 2024 identify and celebrates universities that excel across multiple United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These institutions, as per THE, also demonstrate excellence in contributing to global sustainable development.
Jun 12, 2024
India Ranks 129th on Global Gender Gap index, Iceland on Top: World Economic Forum
India slipped two places on the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Global Gender Gap index to 129th place, while Iceland retained its top position in the rankings published on June 12.
Within South Asia, India was ranked fifth after Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan, while Pakistan was ranked last. Globally, Sudan was ranked last on the index of 146 countries, while Pakistan slipped three places to 145th.
New BTech Curriculum at IIT Madras Focuses on Future-ready Tech Skills
The Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Madras reinvented the BTech curriculum for India to help its students meet the demands of modern and technological developments. This is by far, the most student-friendly engineering curriculum in India, in terms of curricular demand as well as flexibility. The newly revamped programs also allow for early exits from the programs, for those that desire freedom.
These changes have been implemented following the rigorous recommendations of an Institute Curriculum Task Force, orienting it towards employment, research, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Jun 11, 2024
Universities Will be Allowed to Offer Admissions Twice a Year: UGC
Indian universities and higher education institutions will now be allowed to offer admissions twice a year on lines of foreign universities with the University Grants Commission giving a go ahead to the plan.
The two admission cycles will be July-August and January-February from the 2024-25 academic session.
Biannual university admissions will help students maintain motivation since they do not have to wait one full year to be admitted if they miss admission in the current cycle. With biannual admissions in place, industries can also do their campus recruitment twice a year, improving employment opportunities for the graduates.
India, S. Korea, US, Japan, EU Launch Biopharmaceutical Alliance
India, South Korea, Japan, the US, and the European Union launched an alliance to put joint efforts to build a resilient supply chain in the biopharmaceutical sector.
The announcement was made at the inaugural meeting of the Biopharmaceutical Alliance, held in San Diego, California, during the Bio International Convention 2024, the world's largest biopharmaceutical exhibition.
Government officials and representatives from bio and pharmaceutical companies from the participating countries attended the meeting.
The participants emphasised the importance of a reliable and sustainable supply chain and agreed to coordinate the respective countries' bio policies, regulations, and research and development support measures.
They recognised the production of essential raw materials and ingredients is concentrated in a few countries and agreed to work together to build a detailed pharmaceutical supply chain map.
The alliance was launched in response to the drug supply shortages experienced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dharmendra Pradhan Retains Ministry of Education
Dharmendra Pradhan retained the Ministry of Education in the third term of the NDA government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Pradhan has served as a Union Minister in PM Modi's two previous terms as well, handling portfolios including petroleum and natural gas, education and skill development. In the Prime Minister's first term, Ramesh Pokhriyal served as the Education Minister from 2014 till the cabinet was reshuffled on July 7, 2021.
The Education Ministry of Education is divided into two departments – the Department of School Education and Literacy and the Department of Higher Education.
The Department of School Education and Literacy handles the primary, secondary and higher secondary education, adult education and literacy. The university-level education, technical education, scholarships and other related activities are managed by the Department of Higher Education.
Jun 10, 2024
IIT Kanpur, Centre of Excellence for UAVs, and DFI Launch UDAAN
The Start-up Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC) at IIT Kanpur joined forces with the Centre of Excellence for Capacity Building, Training, and Design of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles at IIT Kanpur (Drone CoE Kanpur), an initiative by the Government of Uttar Pradesh, and the Drone Federation of India (DFI) to launch the UAV/UAS/Drone Acceleration and Networking (UDAAN) Programme.
This programme promises to be a game-changer for aspiring and promising drone start-ups in India, providing them with the resources and expertise needed to scale their businesses rapidly.
The UDAAN programme will select 20 start-ups annually, divided into two cohorts, for an intensive acceleration journey. These start-ups will be incubated at SIIC, IIT Kanpur, gaining access to cutting-edge R&D facilities, technical mentorship, financing opportunities, and invaluable industry relationships.
The programme offers a comprehensive support system designed to equip startups with the tools they need to thrive in the competitive drone landscape. This includes strategic product and business development assistance, market analysis, customer targeting, alliance building, and growth plan development.
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