The Union government has planned to increase its annual budget to provide interest-free loans to 10 lakhs students. It would be increased to Rs 2,200 crore in the next three years. As part of its resolve to ensure quality education in the country, it has also planned to digitalise over 15 lakh classrooms.
Addressing the 2nd Higher Education Human Resource Conclave, Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister for Human Resource Development, said, “Over four to five lakhs youths used to get interest-free loans amounting to Rs 800 Crore in 2014. It has been increased to Rs 1,800 Crore to benefit over 8 lakhs students.”
Digitalization
Technology has taken the education industry by storm. Students are getting smart with the evolution of tech, so old- school teaching techniques won’t be much effective. Schools and colleges are going digital to increase the learning experience of students.
The government also aims at launching ‘Operation Digital Board’ in all schools within 5 years. Under this venture, it has planned to digitalise over 15 lakh classrooms from standard 9 to post-graduate levels. This would ensure quality, equality, accessibility and accountability in education by pro-active action and plan. The 'digital classes' would improve the quality of education and bring about a radical change.
Interacting with college students in various districts of the state via video conferencing, Javadekar said, "the digital technology has changed our lives."
Promotion of Entrepreneurship
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make in India Initiative, there is a growing wave of entrepreneurship and startups in the country.
The government wants to promote an environment of innovations, employability and entrepreneurship across the country. The novel venture aims at empowering students with 360-degree information with an interesting learning experience and increased teachers' accountability.
Cluster Universities
To help colleges introduce new courses and engage in more research network, Government has introduced the concept of cluster universities. A cluster university is an initiative of the centrally-sponsored Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) to create new universities by upgrading existing colleges and converting them into a cluster. Cluster universities have also been set up in Jammu and Srinagar.
