Gearing up to take a giant leap in making all activities and documentation work ‘paperless’ at colleges and universities, the Department of Higher and Technical Education has planned to establish Jharkhand Technical University (JTU) as a model varsity that will carry all its tasks only through ‘online’ medium. Within six months, JTU will begin functioning.
Secretary, Higher and Technical Education, Ajoy Kumar Singh during a workshop organized on ‘Online Examination and Online Evaluation’ under the aegis of State Board of Technical Education (SBTE) here on Wednesday said that beginning with JTU, attempts are being made to completely digitalise all the work at universities and educational institutions for maintaining accuracy and transparency. Singh on the occasion asked the delegates, resource personnel to focus on four basic elements before switching from traditional medium to online process for evaluating and conducting examination including other activities. Creating standard software, up-gradation of laboratories, constitution of board for setting standard questions and question bank preparation for all subjects must be considered predominantly before going digital stated Singh.
Taking into consideration, ‘2020’ deadline of the Central government of making all universities, institutions, ‘Paperless’, the department has planned to abolish all fourth grade posts at universities in a phase-wise manner for promoting online mode.“Since, all work will be carried out through online process; extra human-resources deployment at the universities will not be required. For development, acquaintance and promotion of information and communication Technology (ICT), it has become mandatory to remove all generic posts like peons and assistants at the universities,” Singh said.
Meanwhile, Singh added that the universities must start working for achieving the target of ensuring digital locker for each student that enables digital empowerment of students through linking and assembling their data at a common platform. According to the target, the universities have to ensure the ‘digilocker’ system for the students by 2020.
Also, further utilizing the expertise, the department has planned to make biometric attendance mandatory for the college goers. “Now, along with the teachers, students will be also registers their presence through biometric device at the universities and colleges. This is another step to minimize the use of papers. Soon a communiqué regarding this would be issued,” Singh further added.
Several dignitaries present on the occasion stated that the adoption of online process is the need of the hour. Jharkhand Academic Council (JAC) that recently adopted online method for registering the details of students taking Matric and Inter examination in 2018 has been successful in its attempt.