UGC invites proposals for course development for arctic, polar studies for SWAYAM platform

NEW DELHI: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has invited online proposals from higher education institutions for development of courses for arctic, polar studies for the Study Webs of Active–Learning for Young Aspiring Minds (SWAYAM) platform. The proposals can only be submitted online at the link – swayam.infilbnet.ac.in before May 15, 2022.

Also Read | Ambedkar Jayanti 2022 Quiz: How well do you know our first law minister?

“UGC requests all the vice chancellors of universities, directors of Indian Institutes of Technology (llTs), principals of all colleges to submit proposals for development of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) at undergraduate (UG), postgraduate (PG) level for the SWAYAM platform,” said the Commission in an official statement.

UGC has requested to submit proposals on the following six pillars of India’s Arctic Policy:

• Science and Research
• Climate and Environmental Protection
• Economic and Human Development
• Transportation and Connectivity
• Governance and international cooperation' and
• National Capacity Building

The Government of India released lndia's Arctic Policy titled 'lndia and the Arctic: building a partnership for Sustainable Development' on March 17, 2022. lndia's Arctic Policy would play an essential role in preparing the country for a future, where humankind’s biggest challenges, like climate change, can be addressed through collective will and effort, said the UGC notification.

Implementing India’s Arctic Policy will involve multiple stakeholders, including academia, the research community, business, and industry. There is a need to create awareness among universities, colleges about the availability of courses, jobs and research opportunities in the area of arctic, polar studies, it said.

Also Read | Jamia Millia Islamia to adopt CUET for admission to 10 courses; application form from April 14

Also, earlier on the basis of a meeting held at National Security Council Secretariat, wherein it was decided to generate course content on arctic, polar studies for inclusion of courses on SWAYAM platform (swayam.gov.in), UGC further said.

Meanwhile, on April 12, UGC chairman Jagadesh Kumar announced that students will now be able to pursue two full-time academic programmes simultaneously either at the same university or from different universities. Kumar said that the Commission in its meeting on March 31 discussed the provision in detail and therefore, UGC decided to issue guidelines enabling students to pursue two academic programmes at the same time.