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August 2011
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New appointments
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Kapil Sibal and Annette Schavan explore the ideas of meta-universities and higher education summit
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Indo-US Higher Education Summit
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Canada-India Education Summit
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News from Indian institutes
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Kakodkar Committee Report : Taking IITs to Excellence and Greater Relevance
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Announcements
New appointments
India gets new Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences
In a cabinet reshuffle on 12th July 2011 by the Government of India, Mr. Vilasrao Deshmukh has
taken over as the new Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences. Before taking up this
ministry he was the Minister of Rural Development, Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises. Mr.
Deshmukh is the fourth Science and Technology Minister in 18 months. Earlier minsters of S&T and
Earth Sciences in the present government were: Prithviraj Chavan (first to be appointed after the UPA
government came to power in May 2009), Kapil Sibal and Pawan Kumar Bansal.
Deshmukh has been a minister in various governments in the state of Maharashtra from 1982 to
1995 holding portfolios of revenue, cooperation, agriculture, home, industries and education. He was
also a two-time Chief Minister of Maharashtra, (1999 - 2003 and 2004 – 2008).
More information can be found here:
Vilasrao Deshmukh
Press Release from Department of Science and Technology
IIT-Delhi to get a new Director
University of Pune vice-chancellor Prof. Raghunath Shevgaonkar will soon take over as the Director of
the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD). A formal announcement on his move is likely to come
after the President of India puts a seal of approval on the selection.
Prof. Shevgaonkar, who holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from IIT Bombay, was the deputy
director there before taking charge as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Pune in March 2010. He
completed his Masters from IIT Kanpur. His research interests include fibre optics and radio
astronomy.
More information can be found here:
VC may take up IIT-Delhi director's post
Prof. Dr. Shevgaonkar Prof. Shevgaonkar’s CV
University of Hyderabad gets new Vice Chancellor
Prof. Ramakrishna Ramaswamy assumed charge as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hyderabad
(UoH) in June this year. Prof. Ramaswamy, who holds a Ph.D in Chemistry from Princeton University
and a Masters from the IIT Kanpur, was associated with the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New
Delhi since 1986. His research interests include nonlinear science, computational biology and
systems and synthetic biology.
More information can be found here:
University of Hyderabad gets new VC
Prof. Ramaswamy’s webpage
Prof. Dr. Ramaswamy
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Kapil Sibal and Annette Schavan explore the ideas of meta-universities and higher education summit
The German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited New Delhi in the last
week of May for the first Indo-German intergovernmental
consultations on invitation of the Indian Prime Minister Dr.
Manmohan Singh. This visit also formally marked the formal launch
of the “Year of Germany in India” intended to celebrate 60 years of
diplomatic relations between the two countries. Merkel was
accompanied by a high level ministerial delegation.
Sibal and Schavan on the occassion of Merkel's visit
At a meeting on May 31, 2011, member of the delegation Dr.
Annette Schavan, the Federal Minister of Education and Research,
and the Indian Minister for Human Resource Development, Kapil
Sibal discussed the possibilities of intensifying the cooperation
between the two countries.
The focus of the discussion included:
Developing a consortia approach of twinning between universities of the two countries where two to three Indian
Universities could partner with two to three German Universities for conducing degree level courses.
Carrying the programme initiated by the German Ministry of Education and Research, “A New Passage to India” beyond
2012. The Indian side appreciated the programme.
India’s offer to host an Indo-German education summit to explore the possibilities of development of junior faculty,
doctoral and post-doctoral programmes. Other topics may include mutual recognition of qualification, particularly in
vocational education and joint research programmes.
The move to hold such a summit comes close on the heels of both India and USA also agreeing to host an Indo-US summit this
year.
On the occasion of this meeting, two Memoranda of Understanding were signed between IIT Mandi and University of Stuttgart
representing the TU9, and University of Hyderabad and Westfaelische Wilhelms University Muenster.
More information can be found here:
Statement from the Indian Ministry of Human Resource Development
India proposes to host Indo-German higher education summit
Indo-US Higher Education Summit
The first Indo-US Higher Education Summit which was scheduled
to be held in Washington DC on June 15-16, 2011 has been
postponed and re-scheduled for October 13 2011. The
announcement was part of a joint statement by the two
governments after the second annual meeting of the ‘US-India
Strategic Dialogue’ between U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton and India’s minister of external affairs, Mr. SM Krishna in
New Delhi on July 2011. The summit will be co-chaired by the
Indian minister of Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal and
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
During the Indian Prime Minister’s State visit to the US in
November 2009 both the countries agreed to intensify their
bilateral academic cooperation. Eventually in November 2010,
Indian Prime Minister Singh with US President Obama
during the visit of President Obama to India, the biggest bilateral
initiative--“Obama-Singh 21st Century Knowledge Initiative” was
launched. The initiative envisaged funding from both sides to increase university linkages and junior faculty development
exchanges between US and Indian universities.
The joint higher education summit is also a part of this initiative and aims to discuss ways and highlight avenues through
which the higher education communities in the US and India can collaborate.
More information can be found here:
Full text of India-US joint statement (Under the section "Education, Innovation, Science and Technology")
2011 US-India strategic dialogue: science, tech & education ties forged
“Passport to India”
As another part of strengthening the ties with Indian higher education, the US Government announced a ‘Passport to India’
programme to increase the number of American students studying and doing internships in India. Currently there are more
than 100,000 Indian students studying and interning in the United States. This new private sector-led initiative will target
American students – from high school to graduate school – and provide them first-hand knowledge of India while participating
in internships with companies and organizations in India. Passport to India internships would range from three weeks to six
months and would include service learning opportunities such as volunteer work with an NGO, summer scientific research
internships, and internships with an organization or private sector company linked to a student’s academic interests.
More information can be found here:
Passport to India to help send US students to India
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Canada-India Education Summit
A delegation of Indian vice chancellors representing twenty two Indian universities and the chair of University Grants
Commission of India as well as a contingent of over twenty Canadian university presidents/designates participated in the
two-day Canada-India Education Summit held on June 17-18 at Carleton University in Ottawa.
The topics discussed at the summit included possible solutions and opportunities for further collaboration on the higher
education front and addressed issues such as co-tutelle and joint programs, credit transfer and degree recognition, twinning
arrangements, technology in international teaching and distance learning, and faculty and student exchange programs.
This summit was the first of its kind. It built upon a visit of number of Canadian universities to India and a bilateral cooperation
agreement between the two countries. Co-organized by Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute in partnership with Carleton University,
it was addressed by the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, John Baird, and by the Indian Minister of
State for Human Resource Development (Higher Education) Daggubati Purandeswari.
More information can be found here:
Canada-India education summit, Ottawa June 17th and 18th
News from Indian institutes
Indian Institute of Science offers its first Bachelor degree programme
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore, which was established in 1909, has for the first time in its 101-year-old
history opened its doors to undergraduate students. The four-year Bachelor in Science (BS) degree programme, which got its
approval in 2010 started its first session from August 2011. The first time offered programme received over 16,000 applications
for around 120 seats (average 1:130). The eight semester programme consists of six major disciplines – physics, chemistry,
mathematics, biology, materials and environmental science combined with a mandatory minimum number of courses in
engineering and humanities. The final two semesters is exclusively for research project in the chosen major discipline.
"The programme is different from the standard BSc programmes available as you will usually find only three-year BSc plus
two-year MSc for pure science subjects. The objective is to teach students in an atmosphere of research. Faculty will be
academicians who are engaged in research. It is designed in such a way that it is interdisciplinary. (Chandan Das Gupta, dean,
UG programme, IISc, The Times of India, June 13, 2011).
More information can be found here:
Undergraduate @ IISc
Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad set to get more autonomy
The IIM-Ahmedabad after a decade long battle for more autonomy has finally received an approval from the Human Resource
Development Minister, Kapil Sibal. The minister has approved major amendments to the institution’s memorandum of
association (MOA) with the government.
As per the new amendments, the government will have a minor role in the selection of IIM-A directors. The institute will now
also be allowed to purchase and sell assets without seeking government’s approval. The proposal to increase the revenue
generated for IIM through increase in membership of its sponsoring society has also been approved by the HRD Ministry.
More information can be found here:
IIM-Ahmedabad wrests autonomy from Centre
Developments at Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS) at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras
The Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS) at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras in
Chennai which was inaugurated on 6th December 2010 received its first two visiting professors from
Germany in June this year. Prof. Dr Kristin Steger from Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala
University, Sweden has joined the department of Biotechnology at IITM. Her area of research is
Waste Management. Prof. Dr Peter Fiener from Institute of Geography, University Cologne, Germany
joined the department of Civil Engineering and an expert in the field of Water.
The IGCS is a cooperation project between IIT Madras and several German Universities with RWTH Aachen University as the
coordinator from the German side. The main focus areas of the Centre are energy, water management, land-use and waste
management. The centre is funded by the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) under the DAAD initiative “A
New Passage to India”.
Recently the IGCS has announced positions for two German long-term lectureships in the fields of Land use/ Rural development
and Energy as well as invited applications for scholarships from German Master and PhD students for a scholarship in the field
of sustainability (see under Announcements section).
More information can be found on the website of the IGCS.
Kakodkar Committee Report : Taking IITs to Excellence and Greater Relevance
In February 2010 (the committee was constituted in 2010 as per the letter to Sibal published as a part of the report; they
submitted the first report in 2011 and then the revised report soon after in May) okay the Indian Ministry of Human Resource
Development constituted a committee led by Prof. Dr. Anil Kakodar, the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission of India
and IIT Bombay Board of Governors, to suggest a roadmap for the autonomy and future of the Indian Institutes of Technology
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(IITs) as world-class institutions for research and higher learning. The report was submitted in April 2011.
According to the Committee, India needs to nurture a large science and technology based innovation ecosystem that creates
solutions for India’s inclusive development and economic growth. Some of the key recommendations are as follows:
increased autonomy on all fronts, administrative, financial as well as academic
significant increase in the fees amounting to approx. 3.300 - 4.100 Euro per academic year
intensifying industry-academia partnership
setting up of five more IITs with each IITs progressively growing to have around 1200 faculty from 500 today
attracting quality Master and PhD students and increasing the number of PhDs per year to 10.000 from the current
1.000
offering fast track PhD programmes to the top-performers amongst IIT Bachelor students as well as to those from the
NITs, IISERs and IIITs in the form of direct admissions
encouraging industry R&D personnel to become adjunct faculty and enabling large numbers of industry persons to do
PhD
It is interesting to note that very little has been said about internationalisation of IITs in this report though it is supposed to be
a roadmap for IITs as World-class institutions.
More information can be found here:
The Kakodkar Committee Report
Quality at IITs: the road ahead
Announcements
Scholarships and Lecturerships at the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS)
Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS) at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras announces:
Long-term lectureships at the IGCS in the field of ‘Energy’ and ‘Land-use/Rural development’
Scholarships for German PhD students at the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS), IIT Madras
Scholarships for German Master students at the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS), IIT Madras
For further information, please contact:
RWTH Aachen, International Office, Dr. Fotios Risvanis, E-Mail: risvanis@igscs-chennai.org
Announcement can be found here.
DAAD PhD / Sandwich / Short Term / Post Doc Scholarships
The DAAD announces its PhD / Sandwich / Short Term / Post Doc Scholarships. The application submission procedure for all
these scholarships is online. The deadline for submission of applications is October 1, 2011 at DAAD New Delhi Office.
Individual announcements as well as link for application is available on under the DAAD Scholarships section on
www.daaddelhi.org.
DAAD Working Internships in Science and Engineering Scholarships (WISE)
DAAD announces its undergraduate scholarship programme Working Internships in Science and Engineering (WISE) to pursue
2-3 month internship at German universities. The deadline for receiving applications is November 1, 2011 at DAAD New Delhi
Office. The announcement as well as link for application is available on under the DAAD Scholarships section on
www.daaddelhi.org
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