As part of an “in-residence” programme at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, President Pranab Mukherjee hosted 13 “Inspired Teachers” from various Central universities across the country for a week from 23-29 April. The programme, an initiative by the President, is aimed at improving the quality of higher education in the country.
During their week-long stay at the President’s Estate, the 13 “Inspired Teachers”, nominated by their respective institutions, were given the opportunity to interact with several secretaries of the Government of India, Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani and Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers Ananth Kumar.
They also visited schools within the Rashtrapati Bhawan as well as other schools and colleges in Delhi-NCR, where they had the chance to interact with young minds. The teachers were part of the second batch of the programme.
Shamima Siddiqui, deputy press secretary of the President of India, said, “This programme has been an initiative by the President of India to improve the quality of higher education so that our institutions imparting higher education get a better global ranking. It is through these ‘Inspired Teachers’ that we aim to inspire the teaching community to continue its good work.”
“The President’s commitment to improving the higher education system is what motivated us throughout the programme. The higher education system needs to constantly redefine itself and the education curriculum needs to be linked to nation-building with more focus on research-oriented work,” said Banhi Jha, senior professor at the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Delhi.
Aditya Malik, Professor and Dean, School of Historical Studies, Nalanda University, said, “It is a very positive programme as India stands at the cusp of educational change and such programmes would help achieve objectives.”
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