AICTE plans AI integration in all engineering courses: Chairman TG Sitharam

NEW DELHI: The All India Council for Technical Education is trying to counter the stereotype that the MTech is just an extension of the BTech with programmes in niche areas, such as defence technology, space technology and quantum technologies, AICTE chairperson TG Sitharam tells Careers360. He also speaks about the hurdles engineering colleges are facing with lateral entry of BTech students – a provision of the National Education Policy – the efforts to integrate AI-ML into core engineering curricula, retrain teachers and improve placements; why it opposes the University Grants Commission’s teacher recruitment policy and more. Edited excerpts:

As AICTE chairman, where do you think engineering institutes are placed with implementation of NEP 2020?

NEP has many facets, such as research and innovation. It is not just about multiple entry and exit. AICTE actually undertook implementation of [some of] these facets much earlier, whether it was about technology or innovation. We started the Research Innovation Council in 2017 itself. Smart India Hackathon was started in 2017. Model curriculum, curriculum integration to make it multidisciplinary, too, came much earlier. If we look into our model curriculum of BTech, of 160 credits, 12 credits are on environmental sustainability; the Sustainable Development Goals have already been accounted for.

We have implemented multiple entry-exits as well and many universities have adopted it. But at the end of the day, universities are degree-giving institutions; we are only a regulator, the standard-setting party. We have laid down the provisions and many are following. Some of the oldest universities are having difficulties in some places. They have their own academic councils; their own senates [and policies] have to pass through them. Autonomy is also an important part of NEP. My gut feeling is that in the last five years, implementation of NEP has happened well under AICTE.

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It doesn't mean we have completed it; we are still doing it. Institutions always listen to AICTE regulations because over the years, we have also supported them and become a facilitator.

What are the major challenges engineering colleges are facing with NEP?

The major challenge is the multiple entry-exit. It is because for engineering, the admission takes place through competitive examinations. So, the question is, how are you going to admit students in year two and three? The lateral entry bit is a problem.

We have created the lateral entry provision for diploma students to join in their second year. Exit is not a problem. Not many people will leave; some leave only because of financial or health issues or are unique sportspersons or want to take a break for start-ups. Multiple entry is a challenge.

Branch changes are also becoming difficult because of the demand. Everyone wants to do computer science.

How has introduction of the minor degrees helped the institutes and the students?

We have introduced minor degrees in quantum, quantum technology and space technology. Now we are working on defence technologies, atomic energy technologies and digital public infrastructure. This means that students can now specialise while they are in college and learn various other subjects.

We have implemented AI in our curriculum. We have declared 2025 as the “Year of Artificial Intelligence”. We are modifying the curriculum. We have already constituted a committee for integrating AI into civil, mechanical, and electronics engineering. We have already done it for electrical engineering, BBA and BCA.

AICTE has taken the lead in trying to popularise core engineering courses. Do you think the initiatives have helped?

Admission is increasing year by year. But five times more than that is the increase of enrollment in computer science.

The problem is not the number of students in core engineering. The problem is that good quality students are not taking up that stream. Those who don’t get into computer science are joining these courses.

So, how are we handling that? We have created the Yashashvini Scholarship for students who want to do core engineering. We are encouraging talent to come to these branches. We have announced 5,000 scholarships for both boys and girls. For girls, there is a separate scholarship as well. What we are trying to do is attract them to core engineering. We are integrating emerging areas into the branches by modifying the curriculum.

We are teaching core-engineering teachers to learn about AI, machine learning, and cyber security. It is for them to integrate and start teaching those components in these streams as well. Application of these are within core engineering areas. We are empowering both teachers and students.

We are also creating centres of excellence in every college so that they get hands-on training. A lot of emphasis is on skilling. If they take a micro-credit up to 40%, we have allowed that as well. A lot of urban institutions are already doing it. Rural area colleges are facing issues since they do not update themselves regularly. We are conducting workshops for these colleges and inviting heads of institutions.

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Teaching engineering in regional languages was an important area of focus for AICTE. What’s the progress on that front?

Our 700 textbooks are already on the e-Kumbh portal. 91 institutions are providing engineering courses in regional languages. Hindi is popular. Some regional languages like Tamil are okay. Gujarati and Kannada are having trouble in finding students.

Over 600 books are ready for diploma and engineering. They are not run-of-the-mill textbooks but are outcome-based. Every book has a QR code embedded so that they can get additional materials. Textbooks are available in 12 different languages already. 7 lakh downloads have happened as our books are free. After I came here, I made it free.

We are continuously working on popularising engineering in regional languages. We are working with a large number of language institutions in the country, such as Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) Mysore. Our Anuvadini tool into that. We are also organising conferences in regional languages. These conferences are funded only if they are in multiple languages – brochures as well as the talks. VAANI [scheme to promote Indian languages] is working well. It is important to break that resistance of speaking in your mother tongue. Instead of forcing it we are creating opportunities for them to continuously engage.

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What is AICTE doing to enhance the employability of graduates?

We have created the AICTE Careers portal. We also have a separate internship portal, which is very popular. 50 lakh internships have been given, as we started early. It is being managed well. 75,000 industry partners are already there.

The Careers portal has 7 lakh employers. It is not just a portal providing jobs. Students can create resumes, discuss them with peers, and talk about interviews. We have created a community – people who have already got jobs are on the platform and can guide students. It is truly an AI-enabled platform. A lot of opportunities have been created and students have shared their experiences and said how happy they are.

We also have collaborations with multinational companies, like Google and IBM, who are also training on their platforms. More emphasis is on faculty development programmes. We have trained 3,00,000 teachers in the last three years.

What is AICTE doing about the drop in MTech enrollment?

We do acknowledge the decreasing enrollment. AICTE is working on it. We have written to the ministry of education to increase the MTech scholarship.

We are creating MTech courses in very niche areas like defence technology only for DRDO [Defence Research and Development Organisation]. Not just employees, even for new students wanting to work in DRDO. Another one is space technology, quantum sensing, quantum computing. We are going beyond the conventional and traditional method.

The problem was that the curriculum was an extension of BTech. We are trying to break that stereotyping with traditional courses.

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AICTE had raised objections to the UGC regulations on teacher recruitment. What happened to it?

We have sent our recommendations to the ministry, which has forwarded it to the UGC. Ours is a separate regulation. Our positions are different. We have two levels of assistant professor. For us, PhD is not that much of a necessity since it is a six-year programme. We have diploma colleges and engineering colleges with us. We have 6.5 lakh teachers in AICTE-approved colleges. We need to come with a policy which is acceptable.

Our policy doesn’t say anything about vice-chancellors. We have only talked about faculty promotions. We strongly believe that papers are the foundation. We are not touching the domains of UGC, VC appointments.

As for professors of practice, we have assistant-level professor of practice, associate-level professor of practice, because in emerging areas – particularly in cyber security, data science, AI – if you go as per UGC guidelines, you will not find one person as it requires 15 years of experience in industry. The industry itself is not 15 years old. We have slightly modified the guideline and allowed five years of experience for assistant professor-level and eight years for associate-level professor of practice.

The proposed Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) shall replace different regulators, including UGC and AICTE. How do you look at that?

It is very innovative and will bring a lot of transparency to the process of approvals and regulations. We can look at the institutions together. HECI has three verticals — accreditation, regulatory and general council for setting standards, curriculum and the emphasis. Today, 14 regulators are looking after institutions. It becomes easier for the colleges also. They need to go to one agency and get everything done.

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What do you think is still the main challenge of engineering education in the country?

The disruption of technology is one thing. Making everyone adaptable to technology is important for which continuous upskilling is needed. The very big challenge is to make them adaptable to the new world order.

Second, India is going to get a large number of students because the world is becoming an ageing society. We are the youngest nation. Any company you go to, you will find Indian engineers and managers. We have delivered engineering and management education, not just to Indians but to the world. We have done exceedingly well, but more needs to be done in areas of adapting to technology and training our teachers.

AICTE is the technical education regulator in the country. (Image: AICTE official)

FAQs

What is AICTE approved degree?

The AICTE is the top technical education regulator and responsible for setting and maintaining standards for technical education in the country. An AICTE-approved degree is a technical qualification offered by an institution where both have been cleared by the AICTE for meeting norms and standards set in the Approval Process Handbook on a range of parameters, including number of seats, infrastructure, teaching staff and more. However, the approval is not permanent and must be renewed periodically.

What is meant by AICTE?

The All India Council for Technical Education is the top regulator for technical education in the country. It sets standards for and regulates education in professional fields, including engineering, management, design, hospitality, applied arts, architecture, computer applications and their allied fields. In many cases, it shares regulatory responsibilities with councils dedicated to the specific fields.

How many AICTE-approved colleges are there in India?

As per data on the 2023-24 academic session – the latest available on the AICTE dashboard, there were 8,264 AICTE-approved colleges. The vast majority of seats in approved courses – over 80% – are in the domain of engineering and technology, followed by management (14.5%)