Latest news with #Sitharam
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Business Standard
4 days ago
- Science
- Business Standard
We'll integrate artificial intelligence in all branches: AICTE Chairperson
All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) chairperson TG Sitharam on Friday said artificial intelligence (AI) will be integrated into all branches of technical education. While AICTE had introduced a BTech programme in AI and Data Science as early as 2017, the Council is now working to include AI in the model curriculums of all technical disciplines, including engineering, information technology, and management studies, Sitharam told PTI. "A committee of experts has been constituted to suggest necessary revisions in the model curriculums. This committee has already held three meetings. I expect the panel to submit its recommendations within the next month on how AI can be incorporated across all branches. Two months after that, we aim to finalise the updated model curriculums," he said. Based on these new model curriculums, AI-inclusive teaching could begin as early as next academic year, the official said. He also informed that AICTE has made around 1,000 textbooks available online in 12 Indian languages, which have been downloaded seven lakh times over the past two years. Currently, 54 technical institutions across the country are offering various courses in these 12 Indian languages, he said. Sitharam was in Indore to attend a meeting of Parliament's advisory committee, chaired by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The meeting focused on promoting education in Indian languages in schools and higher education institutions.
The Hindu
11-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Tamil Nadu way ahead of the rest of the country in Gross Enrolment Ratio: AICTE Chairman
With more than half the students in Tamil Nadu who pass the higher secondary exam enrolling themselves into colleges, the State has already achieved what the whole country aims to do by the year 2035, Prof. T.G. Sitharam, Chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) said here today. Addressing students on the graduation day of St. Joseph's College of Engineering and St. Joseph's College of Technology in Chennai, Prof. Sitharam said Tamil Nadu has a Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) of more than 50 per cent in higher education, while in the rest of the country it was only 29 per cent. He said the State has done remarkably well in engineering education, while underscoring the role played by the private institutions towards improving the GER. Prof. Sitharam said while degrees are important, upskilling is a priority in the world of technological disruptions. Whether it is Artificial Intelligence, generative AI, cyber security, robotics, or blockchain, these disruptions are changing the way people thought or worked. 'In this world of disruptions, you have to be constantly self-aware and keep up with these technologies,' he asserted, adding that besides picking up domain skills, students should also be prepared to pick up soft skills or any form of art or music to protect themselves from technological disruptions. Later, talking to reporters, Prof. Sitharam said that the NITI Aayog, in collaboration with the AICTE and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has launched an initiative titled DX-EDGE (Digital Excellence for Growth and Enterprise) to digitally and technologically empower Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). This could mean that out of the eight crore MSMEs in the country, a large number of them could benefit from the use of AI that could have a 20 to 30 per cent increase in revenue. When asked if the AICTE considered drawing up an ethical framework for the use of AI, Prof. Sitharam said putting up guardrails could limit innovation. Instead, higher learning institutions should inculcate a culture of ethics among students on how to use AI, when to use it and full disclosure on usage. A total of 2,374 students of batches of 2023 and 2024 graduated from the St. Joseph's College of Engineering while 1,046 students of batches of 2023 and 2024 graduated from St. Joseph's College of Technology.
The Guardian
08-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Tariffs driving India to strike trade deals, finance minister says ahead of UK talks
India is seeking to strike more trade deals with other countries at a time of 'global uncertainty', its finance minister, Nirmala Sitharam, said before talks with the UK chancellor, Rachel Reeves. Sitharam, who serves as finance and corporate affairs minister in Narendra Modi's government, said she was hopeful the UK and India would finalise a free trade deal 'sooner rather than later'. Speaking at the Indian high commission during a visit to London, Sitharam said global uncertainties were 'multiplying by the day', which was 'driving many countries to clearly be active on [seeking] bilateral arrangements' that went beyond their old ideological and political ties. 'India is also looking at many bilateral arrangements. In the recent past, we've signed agreements with Australia, the UAE, with Oman, and we're looking forward to concluding the bilateral trade agreement with the UK, negotiating also with the EU,' she said. 'I think that's the way the world is going.' Asked whether Donald Trump's tariffs had created more urgency in the UK-India trade talks, Sitharam said the negotiations had been going on for 'a very long time' and that it was 'not as if we are rushing into a UK FTA because of what is going on in the US'. But, she added: 'We hope that [with] the new government showing a great deal of commitment and enthusiasm to have this agreement signed, we will be in a position to sign it sooner rather than later.' Sitharam said the world was increasingly multipolar with many competing powers, which had created 'a rapidity with which countries are talking to each other and seeing if they can come up with something, an arrangement'. India has historically been one of the most protectionist countries, with a focus on self-sufficiency over opening up for international trade. When Modi came into power he promised to boost India's already rapid growth by liberalising its economic and trade policy. Nonetheless, Delhi has often taken a cautious approach towards trade deals. An agreement signed last spring with the European Free Trade Association, made up of Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, took 16 years to negotiate. UK ministers are accelerating trade negotiations with the world's fifth-largest economy, which have been happening since January 2022, in hopes of mitigating the impact of US tariffs. Reeves will meet Sitharam for talks on Wednesday, withthe UK and India pursuing a bilateral investment treaty in parallel to a free trade agreement. Sitharam told the event in London that the discussions would touch on 'successfully concluding the investment treaty', mutual recognition of professional qualifications and collaboration on science and technology. She said the two countries would also discuss higher education. 'There was a time when the first choice for Indian higher education seekers was UK, but gradually it came down,' she told the event. 'You see Indians discuss prioritising the United States rather than UK … That momentum will have to be regained.' There have been reports of tensions between the Home Office and Department for Education over graduate visas, which allow international students to stay in the UK for two years after completing their degrees, even if they are not working. Ministers are drawing up policies to reduce legal migration into the UK and are targeting graduate visas amid government concerns they are being abused. However, the education department is said to be anxious about the impact this would have on the beleaguered university sector. Jonathan Reynolds, the trade secretary, is also due to take part in talks with India on Wednesday. He travelled to India last month to formally relaunch trade negotiations under Labour. As part of the negotiations, the UK has asked for lower tariffs on goods such as cars and whisky, and increased access for British lawyers and financial services companies to the Indian market. In return, India has asked for faster and easier processing arrangements for its companies to send workers to the UK. One sticking point has been Delhi's concern that Indians working temporarily in the UK on business visas have to pay national insurance, despite not being eligible for UK pensions or social security benefits.
