UGC's 'Paramarsh Scheme' gets 100 university proposals

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has received more than 100 proposals from universities for its 'Paramarsh Scheme'.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) is expecting to receive around 100 proposals from the higher education institutions for its 'Paramarsh Scheme'. As a part of the scheme, top institutions will mentor five non-accredited institutes to secure National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) grade.

"The last date for submitting proposals by the mentors is September 2. These will then be examined," a UGC official said here on Monday.

"Once the proposals are accepted by the UGC, the institutes can start the mentoring programme within a month," the official added.

The scheme mandates that the mentor institutions should have secured a NAAC score of 3.26 out of 4. Human Resource Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank', who launched the scheme last month, said it would improve quality and standards of higher education in the country.

The official noted that since securing NAAC accreditation has been made mandatory for the open universities too, the top institutions can also mentor open universities which will be applying for NAAC grade for the first time.

How 'Paramarsh' scheme is useful:

Under the 'Paramarsh' scheme, the leading institutions will provide regular mentoring to help colleges to get accredited by the NAACA.

The mentor institutions can be provided financial assistance of up to Rs 30 lakh. There is also an option of appointing an expert, who can be paid a fellowship amount of Rs 31,000 per month.

The scheme aims to improve the global rankings of Indian higher educational institutions.

"The scheme will lead to enhancement of the mentee institutions' quality and its profile as a result of improved quality of research, teaching and learning methodologies. The mentee institution will also have increased exposure and speedier adaptation to best practices," the official added.

About NAAC

The NAAC is an autonomous body that assesses and accredits higher education institutions in the country.

Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/news/story/ugc-s-paramarsh-scheme-gets-100-university-proposals-1591812-2019-08-26 (Accessed on August 27, 2019)

Engineering colleges need to reinvent to be relevant

Engineering colleges need to reinvent to be relevant


Read more at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/70839936.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst (Accessed on August 27, 2019)

UGC on a cleansing process in research sector

Bogus journals, substandard PhD theses under the scanner

The University Grants Commission (UGC) is on a cleansing process against bogus journals and substandard PhD theses as the quality of our research sector has been eroding, UGC vice chairman Bhushan Patwardhan has said.

Speaking on the sidelines of a symposium on ‘Research in Ayurveda: Need, scope and future’ organised by AMMOI (Ayurvedic Medicine Manufacturers Organisation of India) here on Sunday, he said the quality of research papers had been eroding in the country, especially over the past 10 years.

“The UGC has appointed a 20-member committee headed by Padmanabhan Balram, former director, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, to review the research papers approved by the UGC in the last 10 years. The committee has been given six months to review the situation. At least we will know where we stand and how much damage has been done to the research sector,” he said.

To check the umpteen dubious journals that publish papers with vested interests, the UGC has published a list of approved journals, Mr. Patwardhan said. We have requested the universities and institutions to consider only papers that appeared in the journals listed by us while deciding on faculty appointments. They have been asked to go by quality, not quantity,” he said.
Credit bank

‘National Academic Credit Bank’ (NAC bank), is another revolutionary step to be taken by the UGC in the higher education sector in near future. “It will make the inter-university degrees a reality in the country. The NAC bank would allow the students to join one university, pursue courses in another university, and earn the degree from yet another one. This student-centric system, already exiting in foreign universities, will bring lots of flexibility to the students,” Mr. Patwardhan said.

Speaking about STRIDE (Scheme for Trans-disciplinary Research in India’s Developing Economy), Mr. Patwardhan said the objective of the system was to improve collaboration among various stakeholders in the research sector for the benefit of society.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/ugc-on-a-cleansing-process-in-research-sector/article29254256.ece (Accessed on August 26, 2019)

UGC to decide on proposals to review PhD theses soon

UGC to decide on proposals to review PhD theses soon


Read more at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/70833071.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst (Accessed on August 26, 2019)

The top Indian colleges and organisations for internships, awarded by AICTE

Online learning platform Internshala together with All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) organized a national event, on Sunday to celebrate Internship Day 2019 .

The initiative was to honor the colleges and organizations with the best boarding culture.

The top three organizations include the Times Internet, Out of the Box Solutions and today's Kalam Foundation, a voluntary organization working to reform education.

According to Internshala, over 15,000 students received boarding opportunities in the last four months.

Read more at:
https://www.businessinsider.in/the-top-indian-colleges-and-organisations-for-internships-awarded-by-aicte/articleshow/70834885.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst (Accessed on August 26, 2019

Varsities, colleges asked to ready fitness plan for students

Varsities, colleges asked to ready fitness plan for students ..


Read more at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/70822789.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst (Accessed on August 26, 2019)

IIT Bombay Sets New Trend For Convocations: Students Go Traditional With White Kurta Pyjamas Ceremonial Robes

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay students decided to go traditional during their convocation by ditching the ceremonial black robe along with headgears and wearing white kurta pyjamas on Saturday (10 August), Livemint reports.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) told vice-chancellors of all universities to adopt “ceremonial robes made out of handloom fabrics which would not only give a sense of pride of being Indian but also be more comfortable in hot and humid weather”.

Infosys chairman and co-founder Nandan Nilekani and an alumni of the institute was conferred an honorary doctoral degree by the institute. Minister of Human Resource Development Ramesh Pokhriyal was the chief guest of the 57 convocation .

2,603 students, 385 PhDs, and two joint PhDs of IIT-B/National University of Singapore and one Cotutelle PhD (Joint Supervision) agreement with the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivieres in Canada were awarded by the minister.

Source: https://swarajyamag.com/insta/iit-bombay-sets-new-trend-for-convocations-students-go-traditional-with-white-kurta-pyjamas-ceremonial-robes (Accessed on August 26, 2019)