Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said higher educational institutions in the city should strive to be among the top 10 institutes in the world and that his Government would provide them funds required to achieve the goal.
Kejriwal said his Government would organise a summit and invite teaching professionals of Indian origin from across the world to discuss ways to improve the education system in Delhi. “We will do it soon,” he said at the inauguration function of Phase II of IIIT-Delhi campus on Okhla area of South east Delhi.
“No Indian institute figures among the top 10 institutions in the world. It is our dream that at least one college or university from Delhi make it to the top-10 list. I can assure you there will be no shortage of money,” Kejriwal said.
The Chief Minister rued that only 1.25 lakh of the total around 2.5 lakh students clearing Class XII exams every year get admissions to colleges and universities in the national Capital.
The Chief Minister stressed on the shortage of Higher Education capacity and the irony that many students with 97-98 per cent also don’t get good colleges. He firmly stressed that no nation can be developed unless the people of the nation are well educated, it is a necessary but not sufficient condition.
“Education is a mission, an ideology for us. That is why we doubled the budget on education, and that is why Manish Sisodia is working so hard to motivate teachers and principals to a better education system”, the Chief Minister said.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said the Phase II of Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology
Delhi (IIIT-D) campus was completed in about 2.5 years and it was testament to Government’s commitment towards education.
The Phase II expansion of IIIT-D will enhance its students’ uptake from over 1,800 to 3,000. Sisodia who also holds the Education portfolio Minister recalled that the foundation of the institute was laid down by him in 2015 and highlighted the rarity that within just three years such a sprawling campus has been built.
Identifying three major things that highlight the priority to higher education by previous Governments: One being the Delhi University Act from before Independence, that disabled the formation of any affiliating University except one, two being the lack of land demarked for schools and colleges in Delhi by land controlling authorities and thirdly the money allocated to education, Sisodia claimed.
“While working within its purview, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Government has doubled the budget on education and has been expanding the campuses institutions like Delhi Technical University, Ambedkar University, IIIT Delhi as much as possible.
located in Okhla Industrial Area, IIIT-D caters to more than 1,800 students offering P.hD. Program (Areas of CSE, ECE, Mathematics, CB, and SSH); B.Tech Program (CSE, ECE, CSAM, CSD, CSSS, CB) and Specialised MTech programme.