Campus Notes

There will be an external review of each Indian Institute of Management (IIM) every three years, which would be discussed in the IIM Council.

This was decided at a meeting of the IIM Council chaired by Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal here today.

The meeting was also attended by Minister of State for Human Resource Development D Purandeshari, the Secretary, Higher Education, the Chairpersons and Directors of the IIMs and senior officials of the Ministry.

An official press release said the meeting reviewed the progress in the establishment of the new IIMs. It was mentioned that land issues in respect of all new IIMs had been resolved.

The Union Cabinet today approved the enactment of the requisite legislation for establishment of the Regional Centre for Biotechnology Training and Education under the auspices of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

The decision takes into account the fact that modern biotechnology has been recognised globally as a rapidly advancing science wherein molecular techniques and process are employed to develop health care solutions for human and animal sector, for agriculture and environment technologies.

The proposed Centre will engage students in research by integrating science, engineering and medicine with a view to create high quality human resource in disciplinary and interdisciplinary areas, an official press release said.

HCL Learning, the education and talent development division of HCL Infosystems Ltd., today said it had entered into an alliance with the Annamalai University in Tamil Nadu for launching an MBA-IMS Programme (Infrastructure Management & Security).

The two-year programme will be offered in the distance learning mode, a press release from HCL said.

Annamalai University offers a huge portfolio of distance learning programmes, and the MBA-IMS programme will be the first to be launched under its alliance with HCL Learning.

The alliance was formalized at a special launch event in Chennai by Prof. M.Ramanathan, Vice Chancellor, Annamalai University and Mr. Anand Ekambaram, Senior Vice President, HCL Learning.

"We are proud to have partnered with HCL Learning for our MBA Programme. I look forward to a synergistic relationship with HCL and I believe that we can look forward to many mutual learnings as well as newer opportunities for engagement as we go along," Prof Ramanathan said.

Mr Ekambaram said: "The Indian corporate sector requires quality management resources especially in niche fields like IT infrastructure and security management. We are pleased to enter the space of management education and also to have commenced our relationship with Annamalai University, one of the most prestigious educational institutions of our country."

According to the release, the MBA-IMS programme will equip students and practising executives and managers.

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Prof M Aslam today assumed charge as the acting Vice-Chancellor of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).

He succeeded Mr V N Rajsekharan Pillai who completed his five-year tenure yesterday, a statement said here.

Mr Aslam is the Director of the School of Continuing Education and professor of rural development studies at the university since 1992.

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The Government today advised Indian students planning to pursue courses in the CIS/Eurasia region to satisfy themselves about physical safety and living conditions, standards of education, recognition of degrees and certificates and other factors before taking a decision.

An advisory issued by the Ministry of External Affairs said students should also check the general credentials offering the courses and also the prevailing atmosphere at those universities and institutions in question.

The advisory was issued after it came to the notice of the Ministry that a number of Indian students were either pursuing or planning to take up a range of short-term (upto three years or less) courses, including medical courses, at various universities and institutes in some countries of the Eurasia/CIS region.

The National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) and the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), New York have finalised a dual degree programme at the undergraduate level between them.

An official press release said that this meant that selected meritorious students from NIFT would avail the opportunity to obtain a joint degree awarded both by NIFT and FIT.

The association of the two premier fashion institutes would reap benefits which would be multifold in nature and the agreement would be implemented at the earliest for the benefit of NIFT students, an official press release said.

Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal and United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton yesterday launched the expanded US-India Higher Edcation Dialogue as an annual bilateral event to map out strategies for partnership in the field of education between the two countries.

The Dialogue should identify areas for mutually beneficial exchanges and provide a platform for intense and meaningful collaboration among academia, the private sector, and government on both sides, a joint statement issued by the two sides said after the US-India Higher Education Summit.

A United States Education Mission, led by Suresh Kumar, Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service, will visit India from October 10-15 to strengthen the cooperation between the two countries in this area.

The mission, organized in partnership with the U.S.-India Educational Foundation (USIEF), includes representatives from 21 U.S. institutions of higher education, who will meet with Indian partners and explore opportunities.

"This trade mission reinforces the strong educational ties between India and the U.S., and advances the shared agenda underscored by the Obama-Singh 21st Century Knowledge Initiative," Kumar said.

The Union Cabinet today approved the establishment of six new National Institutes of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPERs) at Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Hajipur, Guwahati and Rae Bareli at an estimated cost of Rs.633.15 crore.

The Union Cabinet today approved a proposal of the Department of Agricultural Research and Education, Ministry of Agriculture, to accept the proposal of International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) to establish an international institute - Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA) - in India with centres at Ludhiana in Punjab, Pusa in Bihar and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh.

The National Law University, Orissa (NLUO) has decided to join the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) of 2012.