Only education can lead to a brighter future for the youth of Jammu and Kashmir, Lt Governor Manoj Sinha said on Monday, asserting that it is his dream to make the union territory an “oasis of talent”.
Inaugurating a conference on the implementation of NEP-2020, he said Jammu and Kashmir is gifted with not only scenic beauty but also brilliant minds.
“I have a strong conviction that the New Education Policy will have far reaching effects in the union territory,” he said at the Jammu University.
“Only education can help bring about a brighter future for J&K. It is my dream to make Jammu & Kashmir an oasis of talent, having abundant wealth of knowledge, enterprise and skilled youth.”
The conference on NEP-2020 has been jointly organised by Jammu University and the Department of Higher Education. Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank congratulated Sinha through a video message for taking the lead in implementing the policy and assured full Central support.
Sinha said Rs 300 crore has been released to set up new colleges and completing those under construction and Rs 2,392 crore for school and higher education sector. The Centre has released an additional fund of Rs 500 crore for health & medical education, he said.
Amid the pandemic, the LG stressed the immediate need to intensify research on epidemiology, virology and infectious diseases in universities.
Quoting the American writer-philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, he said, “‘The secret of education lies in respecting the students’. As such there is a need to incorporate students’ feedback into our education system with emphasis on processing the feedback for scientific assessment.”
Sinha said the new education policy would ensure local empowerment while creating global talent.
He asked teachers to reorient themselves to the changing dynamics of the education ecosystem. “The new education policy will not only enable us to harvest true potential of technology, but help us achieve equitable and inclusive education. It also focusses on faculty and institutional autonomy”, said the LG.
The LG laid emphasis on involvement of corporates, philanthropists and top education experts to ensure students get opportunity through scholarships.
He said he is a firm believer in free exchange of knowledge and ideas as it is crucial for thriving education institutions and breakthrough innovations.
Advisor to the LG, K K Sharma, said the motto of the NEP-2020 is to run an integrated education system. “It is basically a multi-disciplinary approach where the students coming from the rural area i.e. socio-economically disadvantaged students will be benefitted,” he added.