Panaji: Vice President of India Venkaiah Naidu on Friday stressed the need to revamp out higher education in tune with the contemporary requirements and said that “we cannot continue to have lakhs of engineering students graduating without basic employable skills.”
Naidu was addressing 4th Convocation of National Institute of Technology Goa here in presence of State Governor Mridula Sinha.
“You are on the threshold of a new life. As you step out into the bigger world, take an oath to work for the good of the society and the country. Education is not only for employment. It is meant to empower, enlighten, widen the perspective of the students and develop them into global citizens,” said the Vice President.
“Here, I would like to emphasize upon the urgent need to revamp our higher education in tune with contemporary requirements. We simply cannot continue to have lakhs of engineering students graduating without basic employable skills every year. This undesirable trend has to be stopped,” he added.
Naidu said that “our Universities need to overhaul the syllabi and the teaching methodologies to make the courses relevant to the needs of the industries.”
“I also feel that engineering students should be made to work as interns for some weeks every year to enable them gain firsthand experience,” he added.
Naidu said that although our (country’s) achievements have been quite impressive during the past seven decades in various fields including agriculture, industry, health, atomic energy, defense research and information technology, among others, we have miles to go.
“We need to improve the quality of life of the millions of Indians, and the role of scientists and engineers is very important in overcoming various challenges,” he added.
The Vice President said that Climate change and global warming are two of the biggest challenges the world is facing today and all nations have to step up their efforts to protect the environment and reduce carbon footprint.
“I have always maintained that man should not tamper with nature but co-exist in harmony with nature for a greener, life-enhancing future,” Naidu said addressing the students.
“Please remember that from times immemorial, Indians believed in worshipping nature and its bounty. Therefore, always uphold our culture and protect nature for a better future,” he added.
The Vice President conceded that even 71 years after attaining Independence, we are saddled with numerous challenges that have to be combated in a concerted manner by all conscientious citizens.
“Poverty, illiteracy, diseases, farmers’ distress and social evils like atrocities on women and weaker sections, child labour, terrorism, communalism and corruption have to be eradicated to build a New and Resurgent India, and I expect the youth of the country to be in the forefront of this noble mission,” he said.
“As engineers, it is important for you to take a closer look at the collective needs of the populace and come up with innovative, cost-effective solutions, especially in areas such as healthcare and education. I would also like the engineering professionals to assume greater responsibility in creating safe, secure, healthy, productive and sustainable life for the countrymen,” Naidu added.
The Vice President said “for India to become the third largest and 10 trillion dollar economy by 2030, we have to surmount many barriers and achieve faster growth.”
Naidu said that India is the fastest growing economy and the GDP is expected to grow at 7.3 per next year. “With improvement in the ease of doing business rankings, India has become an attractive destination for FDIs, while the World Bank had stated that private investments are expected to grow by 8.8 per cent in FY 2018-19,” he lauded.
“The IT sector continues to be a leading employer even as India remained the third largest hub for technology startups,” Naidu said.
“With India poised to become a high middle-income country by 2030, there will be lot of opportunities for the youth in different sectors. The need of the hour is to impart skills to the youngsters to enable them find gainful employment or become self-employed. The Government’s ‘Skill India’ programme is a step in that direction,” he stated.
The Vice President stated that knowledge of technology combined with ethics and values can ensure transparency, prevent social evils like corruption and gender discrimination.
