As many as 100 Vice Chancellors and directors from IITs, IIMs and NITs along with 300 principles from across the country converged here on Sunday for a KIIT DU-organised International Conference coinciding with its Silver Jubilee Celebration to discuss the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and its implementation.
The ‘International Conference on Education for Building Humanity with Harmony and Peace’ was inaugurated by Odisha Governor Hon’ble Prof Ganeshi Lal, saying NEP should play a critical role in shaping a child into a good human being who upholds high moral values in the society. He said that parents should praise their wards for the good qualities they possess and encourage them to build on those qualities rather than asking the child to ape others.
Extolling the virtues of the ancient Indian education traditions, the Governor cited from the Bhagavad Gita to emphasize that the universe is based on cooperation and coexistence. Education must prepare us to dispel ego and greed, and bring about harmony among man, science, nature, and God, he added.
Utkal University Vice Chancellor Prof Sabita Acharya said NEP is vital for human development. “The new NEP is a truly forward-looking policy which addresses the collective aspirations of the new generation and nation”. It focuses on access, equity, accountability and quality. Besides, it seeks to increase the gross enrolment ratio and remove the boundary between curriculum and co-curricular activities.
Founder of KIIT and KISS Dr Achyuta Samanta gave an emotional speech about the meteoric rise of the University from a two-room rented accommodation to one of the largest universities in the country. He said educationists he meets take with awe the phenomenal success of KIIT in a short span of 25 years.
Vice Chancellor of National Law University Jodhpur Poonam Saxena underlined ensuring accessibility of education to all. The value of education is being realized by all sections of society. She said education is the only thing that is common in a diverse country like India where language, cloth and food habits change every 100-200 km.
Director of IIM Nagpur Prof Bhimaraya Metri praised KIIT for its significant achievement during the last 25 years. He said the University has already fulfilled several mandates as enunciated in the NEP such as offering trans-disciplinary education and making education all-inclusive through KISS which imparts teaching to the poor tribal students for free.
Director of IIT Dharwad Prof Venkappayya R Desai spoke about Odisha’s history and mythological connection between Lord Jagannath’s Puri and Varanasi. He advocated the promotion of regional languages as mediums of education and Sanskrit as the second language.
KIIT Vice Chancellor Prof Sasmita Samanta alluded to the transformation of KIIT into the largest university in the country and one of the premier centres of learning in the globe.
The one-day academic meet featured five plenary sessions, three round tables, and a session on the digital library. The plenary sessions covered various aspects of the National Education Policy and topics like Peace and Harmony for Building Humanity. “Education for Building Universal Brotherhood and Respect for All” and “Education for Poverty Alleviation and Maintaining Sustainability” were the subjects for deliberation at the round tables. On the occasion, Prof. T.V. Kattimani, Vice Chancellor, Central Tribal University of Andhra Pradesh presented a book on NEP authored by him to the Governor.