NEW DELHI: Union minister Nitin Gadkari has urged universities to tie up with industry for training students to revive the economy ravaged by the COVID-19.

“Our universities can help industries with innovation research and training,” the Union minister of micro small and medium enterprise (MSME), road transport and highways said at a webinar organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) on Friday.

The official Twitter handle of FICCI quoted him saying that appointing students as trainees in the industries will help in "increasing the economic viability of education without compromising on quality.”

The webinar, with the theme of ‘Impact of Higher Education in the Post-COVID Economy’ was attended by India’s higher education regulators and officials.

The most favoured destinations for higher education, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Italy, Spain and France Have been badly affected due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

Experts taking part in the webinar said India’s comparative lower death rates are in contrast to these countries and will work to the country’s advantage.

Pankaj Mittal, Secretary-General of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) said attracting foreign students to Indian campuses can boost the economy.

“This is the right time to ensure that foreign students contribute to India's economy,” said Mittal.

The ministry of human resource development, in April 2018 had launched Study in India programme to encourage the flow of inbound international students in India.

The objective was to make India a preferred education destination and a hub for international students.

Meanwhile, to address the need of higher education during the coronavirus pandemic, universities across the globe suspended regular classes and shifted them online.

Ronnie Screwvala, co-founder of online learning platform Upgrad, said that online education is here to stay.

“Online education is no more just about a camera in front of the reader or showing video content. It is about the overall learning experience,” said Screwvala.

Anil Shahasrabhe, chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and DP Singh, chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and Manikrao M Salunkhe, president, AIU, attended the webinar.

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