J-K LG Manoj Sinha tells universities to align with NEP 2020 to stay relevant

SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Tuesday said the universities and colleges will have to formulate a plan and organisational readiness for adjustments aligned with the National Education Policy to stay relevant.

“Higher education institutions across the world are undergoing radical transformations. Universities and colleges will have to formulate a strategic plan and organisational readiness for adjustments aligned with NEP 2020 to stay relevant in a constantly evolving world,” Sinha said at the inaugural session of the ‘Round Table Conference’ with newly appointed vice chancellors from various universities of the country here.

Sinha stressed the importance of improving the global rankings of India’s colleges. “We need to increase our share in the multi-trillion dollar global education sector. Institutions with aspirational and shared vision should focus to improve ranking. It should be our top priority and we must take bold action to achieve this goal,” the LG said.

Sinha said there is a massive growth in demand for higher education. In the last 10-15 years, India has contributed 74 per cent of all new higher education institutions in the world. He said more than 13 lakh Indian students are studying in 79 countries. As per an estimate of 2020, students studying abroad are spending approximately USD 30 billion annually.

“Despite having the largest number of higher educational institutions in the world and best facilities, not a single institution of ours is included in the top 10 educational hubs of the world, because of lack of promotion,” he added. Sinha said many countries of the global south are now focused on enrolling international students.

“But we are lagging behind. On the contrary, we top the list of countries sending the highest number of students abroad. This trend needs to be reversed with a transformational approach,” he added. The LG said the J-K administration has taken several steps to overhaul the education system in the Union territory.

“Since September 2020, J-K is witnessing encouraging reforms in the higher education sector. Universities and colleges have been enabled to focus on demand for education outputs, industry requirements, innovation, new-age skills and to be flexible and resilient to meet the needs of tomorrow,” Sinha said.