Entrance exam for Rtapalli School

2 comments February 6th, 2010

SCB Dental department becomes a Dental college with its own principal; PG and superspeciality seats increased in the three govt. medical colleges of Odisha: Samaja

Add comment February 1st, 2010

Shortage of Math Ph.ds in India; current faculty situation at the IISERS and NISER

I was discussing with several people associated with NISER Bhubaneswar. I was told that the NISERs and IISER are having difficulty finding good faculty in mathematics, especially in pure mathematics. (On the other hand they can find very good people in Physics, Chemistry and Biology.) I did a quick survey of the IISERs and NISER and indeed they have much more faculty in Physics, Chemistry and Biology than in Mathematics. Following is a rough count made on Jan 30, 2010.

As evident from the above, all of the above institutes are struggling in hiring faculty in Mathematics. Also, while the young faculty in the other fields (Physics, Chemistry and Biology) mostly have post-doc experiences, most of the younger Math faculty do not have that experience.

One of the reasons behind the shortage of Math Ph.ds is that most people who love Mathematics in high school go on to pursue engineering and perhaps there is a mistaken impression that the career prospects in mathematics is not good. Thus there is a big need for institutions like

The Institute of Mathematics and applications, Bhubaneswar

which is making great efforts to popularize Math among youngsters.

I hope some of the people who loved Math in high school, and now are in other (say IT) jobs would consider pursuing Math. Some of the top places to pursue Ph.D in Mathematics in India are:

• TIFR, Mumbai
• Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai
• Chennai Mathematical institute, Chennai
• HRI, Allahabad
• ISI, Kolkata and Bangalore
• IISc Bangalore
• Various IITs
• the IISERs and NISER
• Some of the Universities

India could also consider hiring foreigners. At least in the USA many Math Ph.Ds from top schools do not get a tenure track faculty position and end up teaching in community colleges. Some of them may jump at an opportunity to be a faculty in IISERs, NISER and other institutions.

2 comments January 30th, 2010

TOI excerpts from the revised concept notes on the proposed 14 Innovation Universities

Following are excerpts from a report in Times of India.

In its revised concept note on the setting up of 14 Innovation Universities, the HRD ministry has proposed two types of reservation policy for these institutions, some of which will be directly funded by the government while a few will be in the PPP mode.

Within PPP, it has been proposed that world class universities from abroad might also be invited to set up similar such institutes here. The government will be a partner in the establishment and research programme while the cost of teaching will be funded by the promoter university.

The Innovation Universities fully-funded by the government will follow the existing reservation policy in admission for SCs/STs/OBCs. The Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, 2006, will be applicable in their case.

However, in case of Innovation Universities in PPP mode, the HRD note says affirmative action cannot be wished away. Therefore, it has been suggested to weight the test scores with a measure for the socio-economic background of the candidates. …

There has also been a slight modification about auditing of accounts. While the money spent by a university or faculty on research or teaching will be kept out of the purview of Comptroller and Auditor General, the expenditure on administration or non-academic areas will be audited by CAG.

Two modes of establishment of Innovation Universities have also been decided. While those fully-funded by the government will come up through an Act of Parliament, the ones through PPP will be established through a Memorandum of Understanding. Financial, academic and research credentials of the private promoter will be the main criterion in selecting them to collaborate with the government.

The Innovation Universities will also have the freedom to decide on their own admission policy.

The 14 Innovation Universities will come up in Amritsar, Greater Noida, Jaipur, Patna, Guwahati, Kolkata, Bhopal, Kochi, Gandhinagar, Coimbatore, Mysore, Pune, Vishakhapatnam, Bhubaneswar.

Add comment January 30th, 2010

SOA University is in the list of 44 deemed universities that may lose their deemed university status

Update on Jan 25 2010: As per this news item:

The Supreme Court Monday restrained the central government from derecognising 44 deemed universities for their questionable academic performance or poor infrastructure and assured tens of thousands of their students of a fair hearing.

A bench of Justices Dalveer Bhandari and A.K. Patnaik ordered status quo for various deemed universities on several lawsuits by the varsities challenging the government’s move to derecognise them.

‘Nothing is going to happen to your institutions and your students till we dispose the matter,’ observed Justice Bhandari while also issuing notices to all 44 universities separately to have their say in the matter.

The case was adjourned to March 9.

The list is given in this TOI news item. Thanks to the people who sent the pointer.

72 comments January 19th, 2010

IIT Kharagapur’s future plans

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

IIT-Kharagpur plans to start by setting up a centre of excellence on Energy Science and Engineering to train students in research and development on various energy verticals like bio-energy, solar energy, nuclear, as well as hydel and thermal energy. …

The institute is also introducing new engineering programme on design and manufacturing where it aims to create globally competent engineering products. It will start School of Entrepreneurship soon where it will offer dual degree in BTech and entrepreneurship programmes. Students will be selected through joint entrance examination (JEE).

“The Innovation Centre will be funded by one of our alumnus, S K Bhattacharya. Each student of School of Entrepreneurship will be attached to an innovation centre. Each student will get a faculty and a successful alumnus entrepreneur to assist him or her. Our aim is to have around 30 per cent of our total student to be PhDs and researchers by 2015, compared to 15 per cent right now,” says Acharya.

An innovation centre is a new concept through which IIT-Kharagpur intends to encourage research and innovation. “We will have support from international institutions and industries to draw on their expertise and develop products of global use. So, for instance, we are collaborating with Warwick Manufacturing Group, Georgia Institute of Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology, among others,” adds Acharya.

Among international collaborations, IIT-Kharagpur is looking at specific areas of collaboration with National University of Singapore for water policies and issues. Also, the institute has signed an agreement with University of California, San Diego, for a 350-700 bed medical college. The collaboration is both for part-financing the project as well as an academic collaboration.

Add comment January 11th, 2010

Funding sources for the proposed innovation universities

Following is an excerpt from a PTI report on this.

Sibal said the government wants to set up 14 innovation universities on various themes and these institutions will earn revenue from various areas, including research.

Brown, however, differed from Sibal on the proposed economic model for the Innovation Universities and said that major funding will have to come from tuition fee.

"This is not going to work. In our university, 50 percent of revenue comes from tuition fee despite the university having a billion dollar of Endowment fund. The universities here will have to depend on tuition fee," he said.

Sibal retorted back, saying that the investment involved in setting a university in India will be less than the cost in the US.

He said institutes should not be charge exorbitantly on students. They can generate revenue from other sources.

The government will set up a Higher Education Finance Corporation to provide funding to poor students for study. The students can pay back the money over a period of time, he said. The HRD Ministry has prepared a bill to set up the corporation.

The loans will be made available for students pursuing professional courses, he said.

I am a bit confused about the innovation universities being on various themes. I thought they were supposed to be multi-dsiciplinary universities aiming to become like Oxford, Cambridge and Berkely.

Add comment January 10th, 2010

Reliance plans a world class university near Mumbai or Delhi; Unless things happen fast Vedanta University will lose its first mover’s advantage

Following is an excerpt from a report in Economic Times.

The Reliance Group is setting up a ‘world-class’ university as it seeks to promote education and research in sectors ranging from liberal arts to technology .

… India’s largest business conglomerate has started the process of identifying land for the proposed university , according to persons familiar with the development.

The university, modelled on the lines of American universities such as The University of Pennsylvania, will tie up with foreign universities. “It will be international in scale and in best practices, but with an Indian soul,” said Mukesh Ambani, chairman, Reliance Group.

Nita Ambani told ET that the proposed university would be located either outside Mumbai or Delhi. “We are looking for sufficient land to set up a world-class university,” she said.

Mr Ambani made this announcement while making the acceptance speech at Mumbai’s Tident Hotel after receiving the Dean’s medal from the University of Pennsylvania’s engineering school. …

The university will initially offer undergraduate courses. It will later offer postgraduate and doctoral courses, Ms Ambani said. India’s big business houses are strengthening their focus on education as it is poised to become a $80-billion opportunity by 2012. Indian spend $50 billion on private education annually, according to a research report by IDFC. It is expected to grow at a CAGR of 16%, said a CLSA Pacific study. 

This is great news for India. I hope things move faster with respect to Vedanta University. Otherwise it will lose its first mover’s advantage. Another thing to note is that some of the people who were/?are? involved in  the Vedanta University project also have University of Pennsylvania ties. They are doing a great thing by convincing various billionaires in India to establish universities that aim to be world class.

1 comment January 9th, 2010

Ad for NEST entrance examination for NISER Bhubaneswar, UM-DAE Mumbai and ISERC Shantiniketan

Ravenshaw University should start 5 yr integrated programs in Science subjects and take its students through this exam.

1 comment January 7th, 2010

Behind the scenes progress on the 14 innovation universities

Following is from a report in Business Standard.

Ivy League colleges – Yale, Harvard, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – have approached the ministry of human resources development to collaborate in the proposed Innovation Universities across the country, official sources said.

These universities are a part of the ministry’s “brain gain” policy to attract talent from all over the world. Human Resources Development Minister Kapil Sibal had last August announced that 14 Innovation Universities will be set up in the country under the 11th Five-year Plan (2007-12).

During his visit to the US in October, Sibal had met senior functionaries of three top universities – Harvard, Yale and MIT – and had discussed the prospects of them setting up Innovation Universities in India in partnership and collaboration with Indian institutions.

Sam Pitroda, the well-known technocrat and the head of the National Knowledge Commission, is learnt to be drafting the details for establishing the Innovation Universities. “Pitroda will soon meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and discuss the matter. An announcement on the details could come up during the Republic Day ceremonies,” said a source close to the development.

The ministry is also looking at public-private partnerships for establishing some of the Innovation Universities. This means that these universities would be autonomous, and outside the purview of the University Grants Commission or the All India Council for Technical Education.

Add comment January 3rd, 2010

Existing and recently approved (in the 11th plan) Dept. of Biotechnology Institutes

Following is an excerpt from the PIB http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=56523.

Autonomous Institutions: There are seven existing autonomous institutions under Department of Biotechnology namely National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi; Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD), Hyderabad; National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Manesar; National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi; Institute of Bioresource and Sustainable Development (IBSD), Imphal; Institute of Life Sciences (ILS), Bhubaneswar. Recently, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB), Thiruvananthapuram has been taken over from Government of Kerala. These institutes have generated 382 publications, 24 patents granted/filed, 9 patents in pipeline and 13 technologies were developed.

Establishment of new breed of institutions in critical areas has been one of the major strategies of 11^th plan. Cabinet has approved setting up of institutions namely Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine, Bangalore; National Agri-food Biotechnology Institute with bioprocessing plant  Cluster in Knowledge city at Mohali; Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI); Regional Centre for Biotechnology Training and Education under the auspices of the UNESCO, Faridabad and Institute of Biomedical Genomics in Kolkata and efforts are being made to establish institutions. In other proposed new institutions, National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, Hyderabad has been approved by EFC.

Regional biotechnology clusters , around the new institutions are being planned to promote innovation and discovery. These are the Translational Health Cluster at Faridabad, the Agrifood Cluster at Mohali and the Innovation Cluster at Bangaloore. Together, it is hoped that these will become the technology and innovation gateways of India.

Add comment December 31st, 2009

Efforts to improve the infrastructure of Utkal University of Culture: Samaja

Add comment December 31st, 2009

Vedanta University campus design showcased as a 21st century university campus

Following is a lecture announcement in New York for 14th December 2009. It is excerpted from the page http://cfa.aiany.org/index.php?section=calendar&evtid=1024.

Mon 12.14.2009

CES LUs 1.5; HSW 1.5

When: 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM MONDAY, DECEMBER 14

Where: 19 Washington Square North

Speakers:
Adam Gross Design Principal, Ayers Saint Gross
Pawan Agarwal Civil servant in the Indian Government and author of Indian Higher Education, Envisioning the Future

 

The 21st Century Campus Series

NYU Abu Dhabi joins a small number of complete universities developed in the 21st century. The series will highlight both campus design and the ideas about education these plans embody. We are interested in the communal ideals the campuses stand for, the challenges associated with community building in the 21st century, and the intercultural agenda universities are forging with their host cities and regions. The lectures will take place at 19 Washington Square North, the gateway to NYUAD in New York City.

This series is co-sponsored by the AIA New York Chapter.

 

CES LUs 1.5; HSW 1.5

Lectures are free and open to the public, but seating is limited.

Please RSVP by email to 19wsn.rsvp@nyu.edu.

 

This second lecture in the series, on Vedanta University, Orissa India, will feature:
Adam Gross, Design Principal, Ayers Saint Gross, Inc.
Pawan Agarwal, Author of Higher Education in India: The Need for Change (2006)
 

Add comment December 27th, 2009

Speech of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh at the foundation stone laying ceremony at National Institute For Science Education And Research, Jatani, Bhubaneshwar

Update:  Additional coverage at http://niser.ac.in/docs/2009/pmvisit-27-12-09.php.

Following is from http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=56479.

I am delighted to be here today to participate in the foundation stone laying ceremony of this National Institute of Science Education and Research. The institute symbolizes our commitment to the development of Odisha and its people. It also symbolizes our commitment to the cause of education, and particularly to science education. 

We recognise the important role that education has to play in our development process and our steady progress towards being a modern knowledge society. In the last about five years our government has undertaken a massive expansion and improvement of our education system at all levels. But we realize that we need to do much more. 

In the area of science education particularly, I share the concern that our best minds are not turning to science. We must find ways of making science more attractive to our youth. We must improve the quality of teaching in science and mathematics at the school level. At the university level we must ensure better infrastructure, high quality faculty and greater interaction between academia and industry. 

Since independence, there has been a great deal of progress in our Science & Technology system. This is evident from the success of the mission-oriented Science &Technology agencies, like the family of Department of Atomic Energy institutions, that have made our nation proud. We are committed to ensure operational autonomy, including in matters of appointments, to various institutions of excellence under the Department of Atomic Energy as is the case with some other scientific institutions of eminence in India. 

I am also aware that we need to increase our expenditure on Science & Technology from its current level of 1% of our GDP. This is about half of the level of developed countries. The Government is committed to increasing Research & Development funding and for the last few years, we have been allocating larger budgets in this area. But I also expect the private sector to do more for Research & Development. We also need more public- private partnership in Research & Development in all areas of Science & Technology. 

One way of making careers in science and technology attractive would be to improve remuneration and ensure the integrity of the selection process. It is well known that the initial starting salary for scientists with a PhD in India is often lower than those of Engineers, Doctors and Management graduates. It is obvious that if talented young people are to be retained in science, scientists have to be treated differently than other Government employees in service and salary matters. 

It is our expectation that the National Institute of Science Education and Research will produce scientific trained manpower of a very high quality which could directly find placement across the country. There will be greater emphasis on branches of science relevant to the Department of Atomic Energy, which also cater to better exploitation and utilization of Odisha’s natural resources. Odisha’s mineral and marine resources will be taken into consideration in designing training programs for students here. 

We expect NISER to be an institute at par with the best in the country in terms of facilities and faculty. It will have a research to teaching load as practiced in the best universities in the world. This will ensure world class education and also attract the best researchers. It will have world-class experimental facilities in all the current and emerging branches of science including physics, chemistry, modern biology and environmental sciences. I am confident that the National Institute of Science Education and Research will become an eminent institute for science like TIFR and IISc. 

Let me end by wishing the National Institute of Science Education and Research all the very best in the years to come. Odisha has produced many outstanding scientists like Jogesh Chandra Pati. I hope this institution will produce many more great men of science. I also wish all of you all success in your efforts to make India stronger in Science and Technology.”

*****
AD

Add comment December 27th, 2009

160 construction companies bid for the AIIMS-type institutes

Following is an excerpt from a report in expressbuzz.com.

There is an unprecedented response for tenders for the construction of new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)-type medical institutions in Patna, Raipur, Bhopal, Bhubaneshwar, Jodhpur and Rishikesh.

Sources in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare sais around 160 construction companies joined the bidding making it more competitive.

Thanks to the incentive package, if the construction of the institute is completed within the stipulated time or little in advance of the scheduled time, the company would get benefit of Rs 10 crore at one stroke. As per the detailed project report, construction cost of each institution, which comprises the medical colleges and the hospital, is around Rs 300 crore and for the all the six institutes, the cost would be around Rs 1800 crore.

1 comment December 26th, 2009

Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), including its Dhenkanal campus on its way to become a Media University

Following is an excerpt from a report in livemint.com.

A two-and-a-half-year-old proposal by the ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B) to upgrade the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), a 45-year-old state-run media school, into an international university may be approved.

The I&B ministry is preparing a draft cabinet note on the subject in consultation with the institute, according to a report of the standing committee on information technology tabled in Parliament last week. …

The enhanced status will let it offer bachelor’s and postgraduate degrees instead of the postgraduate diploma it currently offers.

The I&B ministry has also asked the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi for facilities since the media institute is currently located on the JNU campus. The university status will also cover IIMC’s campus at Dhenkanal in Orissa.

1 comment December 22nd, 2009

Ravenshaw to offer teaching jobs to its toppers: Dharitri

Add comment December 18th, 2009

Sibal in Singapore; talks about co-operation in building Innovation Universities

Following is an excerpt from a report in Times of India.

Sibal, who was speaking at a Singapore Symposium here, said both India and Singapore will cooperate in setting up 14 innovation universities in India.

India needs modern universities to bridge the huge skill shortage gap and Singapore can be the best country to partner with in this area. Infrastructure, education, and skill development are the potential areas of cooperation between the two countries," he said.

Sibal said India is grappling with the challenge of building architecture for 21st century cities and cooperation with Singapore in this sector can be beneficial in identifying a possible solution.

Singapore has achieved an enormous level of excellence in innovation and India is rich in skilled manpower, and greater cooperation between the two countries can result in win-win opportunities for the two countries," he added.

Sibal said India has very recently initiated steps to reform the education sector and added that positive results are expected by 2014.

Following is excerpted from a PTI report in Hindu.

With a large number of rural people migrating to urban areas, the government is planning to set up an innovation university dedicated to study and research in sustainable city development, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said today.

This university will work on all issues, including city planning, water management, urban transport, housing and energy, he said at ‘The Singapore Symposium’ here.

The government will set up 14 innovation universities. One of them could be on the area of city development which will work on technology solutions for urban planning,” he said.

Mr. Sibal said that urban areas in the country are yet to be developed. They suffer from myriad problems starting from power crisis to drainage and water management. The government is looking for partnerships with various agencies for starting such innovative universities.

Why cannot we have a partnership with Singapore to move forward?” he asked.

The government is in the process of setting up 14 innovation universities aiming at world class standards. Some of these universities would be set up in partnership with foreign institutions.

After US and UK, Singapore is the third country where the Inidan government has mentioned possible partnership/co-operation for developing its proposed innovation universities.

Add comment December 16th, 2009

RTI response on ESIC Medical College in Orissa

On 22nd October 2009 Prashant babu had filed an RTI with the following questions:

1. What are the reasons for choosing Bhubaneshwar, Odisha as the location for ESIC Medical College and Hospital, when Rourkela and its nearby areas are having the largest number of ESIC Insured Persons (ESIC Employees)?
2. On what ground Bolangir, Odisha was not considered as a location for the ESIC Medical College and Hospital?
3. Whether Rourkela as a location for ESIC Medical College proposed by Govt. of Odisha? If so please specify the date of such porposal? Who had sent the proposal (Name of the person/officer)?
4. If Rourkela was proposed, then on what ground it was not considered by ESIC for setting up the Medical College and Hospital?

He has now received the response. They are as follows:

1. Govt. of Orissa has offered 25 acres of land at Bhubaneshwar for setting up medical college by ESI Corporation.
2. There was no such proposal for consideration.
3. Govt. of Orissa has not proposed Rourkela as a location for ESIC medical college.
4. Not applicable. 

Different people are interpreting this different ways. My interpretation is as follows: 

• It is clear now that Orissa government plays a crucial role in deciding on the location of the ESIC medical college. The center may still say yes or no to a proposed location but it does not seem to have the power to propose a location on its own. This means the CM needs to be convinced. (That is why it was a big step to get the hint that the CM is now aware of the issue. However, it remains to be seen how accurate that information is.)
• Newspaper reports can not be trusted completely. From first hand experience I know that if there is a paper about X in the desk of a secretary some news papers have printed it as Orissa government has a proposal for X. There have been times where an email I sent to the government, which happen to lie in the desk of a secretary, has later appeared in the news papers as an Orissa government proposal whereas in reality my email printout probably went to some file (at best) or the dust bin. So my analysis is that somebody in Orissa government mentioned the name Balangir in the ESIC medical college context and it probably never made it out of the Orissa government; but regardless the newspapers printed about it. Its also possible that somebody on purpose gave wrong or misleading information to the media.

In any case, Prashant babu desreves thanks for using the RTI mechanism to get these answers. Now it is clear where the buck stops on this matter (the CM) and where the efforts should be concentrated on (the CM).  With the reluctance of the Rourkela MLA and the Labor Minister to bring this issue to the CM, some other way to access the CM and convince him about Rourkela needs to be found.

3 comments December 14th, 2009

National Institutes functioning under ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment

Following is from http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=55608.

(a) The seven National Institutes functioning under the Ministry are:

i.  National Institute for the Visually Handicapped (NIVH), Dehradun, Uttrakhand.

ii. National Institute for the Mentally Handicapped (NIMH), Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh.

iii. Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for the Hearing Handicapped (AYJNIHH), Mumbai, Maharashtra.

iv. National Institute for the Orthopaedically Handicapped (NIOH), Kolkata, West Bengal.

v. Swami Vivekanand National Institute for Rehabilitation Training and Research (SVNIRTAR), Cuttack, Orissa.

vi.  Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute for Physically Handicapped (PDUIPH),New Delhi.

vii. National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (NIEPMD), Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

Add comment December 10th, 2009