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Hon’ble Kuladhipati ji, His Excellency, Governor of Madhya Pradesh, our guest of honour Hon'ble Minister of Man Power Planning Shri Gupta Saheb, Hon'ble Minister of Industries Shri Nahata ji, Chief Secretary Shri Sharma Saheb, Hon'ble Member of UPSC Dr. Om Nagpal, our distinguished guests Prof. S.K.Khanna, former Chairman AICTE, Chair Professor at IIT Delhi, Prof. J.S.Rao, delegates to the National Symposium, Principal Prof.P.C.Jain, members of the faculty of TTTI, Officers of the Government, Heads of the Government undertakings and the Industries Houses, Principals of Colleges of Engineering and Polytechnics, Officers of the Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya, Members of Press and Media, Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is indeed a matter of high honour and privilege for the Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya and the TTTI fraternity to receive our country’s most distinguished educationist, philosopher and able administrator Dr. Bhai Mahavir ji, Hon’ble Kuladhipati of the University, His Excellency the Governor of Madhya Pradesh as the chief guest at today's inaugural function of the National Symposium on "Technical Education in India in the next millennium – with the underlying theme of examining our preparedness". Sir, your gracious presence at today’s auspicious function is a source of high inspiration and motivation to all of us. Your emphasis on a value-based education, your concern to orient technical education for the welfare of the Society, your caring guidance to making education a valid means to assure national prosperity will be the guiding philosophy of the newly set up Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya, the University of Technology. It is my considered opinion that technical education, can be used as a valid means of techno-economic development of our state and our country at large. It, in fact, can be used as a vechile of transformation of our present less productive and less efficient agro-industrial society into a highly cost-conscious, productivity- oriented, economically developed humane society. I wish to thank you for your kindness in accepting our invitation to inaugurate today’s function.

I am personally grateful to our Hon’ble minister of Technical Education Shri K.K.Gupta ji, our Hon’ble Minister of Industries, Shri Narendra Nahata ji, Hon’ble Member of UPSC Dr. Om Nagpal and the Hon’ble Chief Secretary Shri K.S.Sharma Saheb for their gracious presence at this august function. I draw immense pleasure in according a very warm welcome to our luminaries on the dias, to our distinguished guests Prof. S.K.Khanna, former Chairman AICTE, Prof. J.S.Rao, Prof. R.K.Singh, Prof. M.S.Sodha, Prof. T.C.Rao, Shri Anil Shrivastava, Shri P.S.Khare, the Heads of the institutions in M.P. and every one present at the inaugural function of this highly relevant national symposium on "Technical Education in India in the Next Millennium – our preparedness".

The national symposium on "Technical Education in India in the Next Millennium" has been organized by the Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya jointly with the prestigious TTTI to review our preparedness to meet the challenges of Technical Education in the next millennium. The Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya firmly believes in creating a synergetic partnership between the University and the Institutions; between the University and the Industries and between the University Institutions and the R&D organizations. The present symposium is, in fact, a manifestation of such a synergetic partnership being established between Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya and the TTTI, Bhopal. Such a synergetic partnership between the University of Technology and the institutions, between the University, the institutions, the industries and the R&D organization is an organizational goal of the Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya. In this quest, we seek the cooperation and support of every one present at today's function.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are in an age where we have to pool our strength together to create what I call "India Advantage" to ensure that we become, in true sense, a catalyst of change to transform the high levels inefficiently pervading today at all levels into highly efficient systems and processes, change the present low productivity in production into high levels of productivity and total quality in production; create core competence and to use our competence and capabilities to create the much needed "India Advantage" so as to support and sustain our nation’s economic growth through the development of new and relevant technologies, by improving productivity, by improving the production processes, through the development of knowledge-based systems and creating highly work and quality conscious human resources.

We, in the engineering and technical education sector have been producing degree and diploma holders for the last 52 years of our independence. It is, however, painful that we have not been able to produce professional engineers of the kind required to solve our country's pressing problems of energy shortage, environmental degradation and ever-increasing problems of transportation and poor maintenance of civic services. The newly set up Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya is aimed at producing the knowledge workers of tomorrow to support our industrial and service sectors.

We have been able to market successfully our human resources in India and abroad. In fact, we have moved our brain power across the boundaries of the nation to create a high recognition of our nation's competence in technical education in the advanced countries of the world. The significant drain of brain power from India could, however, not herald our progress in the frontal areas such as Information Technology and Software Engineering. In fact, we have been able to create "India Advantage" in the software sector despite a tough competition from abroad. The brain drain from India has resulted into a near total dependence on the import of technologies from abroad and, if such a trend is allowed to continue further, it will seriously cripple our economy in the near future. Such signs have already beginning to emerge.

In the globalised era, we have to compete with one and all, strong and mighty included. We can create a competitive edge for our industries and, thus, an "India Advantage" for our economy if we challenge our brain power for the benefit of our country. Who else other than those who are in the business of producing men and women of competence and calibre such as our engineering and technology institutions can make this happen? The Government of the day must understand the importance of this "brain power utilization mission". The call for Jai Vigyan must, in fact, be made more powerful by making it "Jai Vigyan, Jai Proudyogiki" Far if we do not, the scientific temper alone will not be able to help India create "India Advantage" to provide the much-needed impetus to propel our nation's to the path of progress anticipated to become an economic super power by 2010.

Engineering and Technology education in Indian universities and institutions must have strong bias for local application of the knowledge being acquired and cultivated. We have so far thrived and, undoubtedly, succeeded in enriching the universal component of our education. But, I must say that we have not been able to utilize and apply our knowledge and expertise for creating the pride in Indians working in India. We have not really been able to earn a pride position for our country amongst the community of nations as one of the technological power despite the fact that a significant national effort has been put in by our Government in successive plans of technical education in this country. We have to, therefore, seriously ponder as how to ensure our State's as well as the natio's prosperity and yet retain the universal appreciation for our engineering and technology education.

Our forefathers have said " tuuh tUe HkweL; LoxkZnfi xjh;lh " i.e. it is through the service of one's motherland, one's society, one's people that one truly attains the happiness of the heaven. In fact, we could create a heaven on earth, if we are firmly committed to serving our people with total dedication and commitment.

We have to ensure that our highly enthusiastic school leavers understand that they are in a privileged position to serve their motherland and their people as they acquire high levels of competence and calibre through engineering and technology education in Indian Institutions. What is required is that while we modernise and improve the infrastructure in our institutions, we should simultaneously create working conditions conducive to academic and professional excellence. We should be able to motivate the highly enthusiastic and energetic student community in engineering institutions so that they become the servers of the society; providers of efficient and effective services; become creators of highly innovative products and technologies and thus create pride in Indian professionals working in India and attaining individual as well as national prosperity. Then only India will be able to encash its multifold talent and would be able to transform knowledge into wealth and people's prosperity.

The dawns of the new millennium are already fast approaching. The bells have already started ringing as hardly 68 days, 544 working hours even if we work 8 days every day are left. While the developed nations of the world have already consolidated and upgraded their Technical Education System to respond to the challenges of the next millennium, we, in India, are still preparing the strategic framework for augmenting our efforts. In fact, the time is running out. We must act now or we have to repent forever.

Technical Education in India today as well as in the fast approaching 21st century has to respond to emerging challenges. The real challenge lies in designing a course curriculum commensurate with the modern requirements of quality technical education; in having a unified curriculum yet providing adequate flexibility for one's choice of speciality and still providing adequate opportunities for manifestation of innovation and creativity within the four walls of an academic institution. We have to device an efficient and effective examination system so as to assess the competence of our students while, at the same time, make the examination system a supporting means of improving the learning process. We have also to develop a well-validated accreditation system for technical education so that our degrees and diplomas receive national as well as International acclaim. We have to create a synergetic partnership between the university and the industries, so as to pool each other's strength to create professional harmony between academics and the world of work. We have to work together so that our joint efforts result in creating strength for our industry while, at the same time, promoting professionalism in academic institutions. We have to network institutions together to optimally utilize the existing resources. This aspect is more important in our Country as we have a large populace and a fragile economy, at present.

In essence, our institutions, our universities, our R&D organizations and our industries in India and the professional societies have to work as partners in progress to greet and meet the formidable challenges of a globalised economy. The challenge also lies in establishing national and international cooperation and collaboration to create an "India Advantage" in our academic, professional, industrial and business activities. The challenge lies in this country in creating a work culture tuned to high academic and professional ethos in our academic institutions so that we march on the path of excellence alongside assuring national prosperity.

Let me pray that we succeed in creating many more Abdul Kalams, many more Mashelkars, many more C.V.Ramans and many more Ramanujans in India through our educational efforts in science and technology sectors. Let me also pray that we succeed in winning a pride position for our engineering and technology education system in this country.

The Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya (University of Technology) has been set up by the Government of Madhya Pradesh with a clear object of consolidating and rejuvenating the technical education system in the heartland of India, the state of Madhya Pradesh. The University has also to provide its formidable support for the growth of emerging and new areas of technology in the state of M.P. The founding fathers of this University must have had a dream and their dream was to provide a valid means of assuring quality technical education in the whole of the State. We, in the Rajiv Gandhi University of Technology, are firmly committed to persue and provide a formidable support for the cause of quality education and research. We shall create a synergetic partnership between the institutions, the industries and the R&D organisations in our State, in our country and even abroad. The partnership with TTTI in organising the present national symposium is an example of our willingness to work in close cooperation with our partners. We shall promote a consortium approach for the development of new technologies, we shall pay a much greater attention to the intellectual property rights and its awareness in the masses. We will promote this aspect in our educational institutions and will prepare our students for the same. We shall work for the lifelong cultivation of knowledge through our well designed continuing education programmes and thus will provide effective and efficient services to the engineering and technology professionals in the country so that the engineering profession becomes a profession of national pride in our country as our forefathers had always worked for such a noble cause through their quest for " ;ksx% deZlq dkS'kye~ " i.e. to attain perfection in work activity through total commitment and dedication.

During the last two months since I joined as the Vice-Chancellor of this prestigious University we have laid strong foundation for the setting up of a gene for meeting the novel objectives of the University of Technology. Considering the importance of the Information Technology in today's engineering and technology professions, a B.E. degree level course in Information Technology has been introduced in some selected institutions in the State. The University has planned to serve the vast majority of the institutions spread over an area of 4,43,000 sq.kms. in this largest State of our Country through setting up an Advanced Information Technology Centre at the University head quarters at Bhopal networked to RGPV servers at five strategic locations such as Indore, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Bilaspur and Raipur so that the students from various parts of the state are provided the University services in their neighbourhood.

The University has also begun with the Curriculum, Innovation and Examination Reforms so that a unified, updated and modern curriculum and reformed examination system is made available from the next academic year, 2000-2001.

Let me close by extending a very warm welcome to every one present at today's function. Let me also pray that your brain waves invigorate our mind- set and let the deliberation at today's symposium provide us with the clarity of thinking and concrete plan of action to meet the challenges of Technical Education in India in the next millennium.

Let us all, individually and collectively, excel in our activities. Let us all work together so that we all attain glory in our life time.

" lg ukS ;'k%A lg ukS czgzkopZle~ " be our motto and nothing short of it.

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your perseverance and patient hearing.

Gwalior, Oct 10: From next session onwards, the University of Technology will begin the work of granting degrees. The institution, Rajiv Gandhi University of Technology, would be the first of its kind to which all engineering colleges will be affiliated. Once the University begins functioning, the engineering colleges will become uniform and administrative problems related to examinations will be checked to a great extent.

The State Government has appointed a vice-chancellor also or this university. The University will make use of advanced information technology and will make available several kinds of information which will prove of immense importance to industries and students.

All engineering colleges of different universities will now be affiliated with this university. The problems being faced earlier were untimely examinations being held non-uniformity in courses and subjects of the engineering colleges.

The MITS students of Jiwaji College were facing severe problems like delay in results, delayed results of revaluation.

But now these problems will be checked by the new university because this university will only run engineering colleges and it will provide degrees to the students pursuing graduation, diploma and post graduation courses. Even Architecture and Pharmacy courses will also be included in the University.

Thousands of degree and diploma holder engineers are being churned out in the state but not professionals because of lack of proper and adequate training.

Industries are also not able to give time to engineers, so the university will endeavor to ensure that all engineering students obtain behavioral training so that they can get jobs easily that is technical education will not remain bookish knowledge.

With this main aim in mind, the University of Technology was formed.

The Examination system will become more behavior and result-oriented.

The University will keep a check on the failing standard of education in engineering colleges, for this the entire management will be given a face-lift.

Bhopal: Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya organized a brain storming session on issues concerning technical education in the next millenium at the profession Examination Board on Saturday. Inaugurating the session, Krishna Kumar Gupta, Minister of Higher Education and manpower Planning, appreciated the Idea of organising intense discussion on various issues with a view to review technical education in the state.

He said that such exercise should be undertaken by the Department of Higher Education so that non-professional sector could also be prepared to meet the emerging challenges of the next millenium.

Emphasizing the need for curriculum upgradatiom, Gupta called upon the engineering colleges in the state to pay greater attention to computer engineering and information technology (IT) disciplines so that Madhya Pradesh could generate a seizable proportion of manpower and brain-power to meet the ever-increasing demand of the industrial sector. Moreover, along with the knowledge the students should be equipped with professional ethics and managerial skills so that they become highly productive for the society.

Delivering the Keynote address Vice Chancellor, RGPV, Professor PB Sharma highlighted the need for curriculum innovation, examination reforms alongside the pressing need of establishing synergetic partnership with the Industries.

Expressing his concern on the serious shortage of faculties Professor Sharma called upon for a greater apperception of engineering teaching by the society. He invited the technical institutions of the state to take full advantage of early bird induction scheme of the AICTE to interact with the talented final year students and induct them as teaching faculties. Professor Sharma also suggested the Government to include technical teachers of engineering colleges and polytechnics in the purview of national awards for the teachers so that due recognition to excellent teachers in engineering could be granted. A similar exercise at the state level is also needed to recognize and reward the excellent technical teachers, he added.

The other speakers of the programme included renowned educationist Dr TS Murthy, former director general, MAPCOST, Director Technical Education, Dr YK Sharma, Director, Professional Examination Board, Dr SM Bhatia, Principal College of Engineering Bhopal, Professor Krishnamachar, former Director, Technical Education, Professor CA Keswani and others.

According to a previous decision, Rajiv Gandhi University of Technology would arrange the courses in various universities and colleges. According to a State Government decision, Information Technology Programme has been affiliated with the university.

The meeting was participated by Vice Chancellor of Vikram University, Ujjain, Professor RKS Chauhan, VC, Rani Durgavati University, Jabalpur, Professor Sureshwar Sharma, representatives of Ravishankar University, Raipur, Devi Ahilya Bai University, Indore, Jeewaji University, Galior and principals \ representatives of engineering colleges of Jabalpur, Bhopal, Mandsaur, Bhilai and Indore. The meeting was also attended by Director, Professional Examination Board and Additional Director, Technical Education.

Earlier delivering the welcome address, Professor PB Sharma shed light in the aims, mission and objectives of the Technology University. He said that the meeting was organised at a short notice because the academic session has already started and the university could not afford to delay the introduction of Information Technology.

Tuesday’s meeting used the guidelines produced by a workshop organised by the Directorate of Technical Education on August 11. The workshop had prepared a scheme of syllabus of Information Technology with the help of subject specialists. According to information provided by the university, syllabus for first and second semesters has been given the final shape during the meeting. It was decided by the meeting that syllabus for rest of the semesters will be prepared in a separate workshop. With this all the engineering colleges conducting Information Technology Programme will be following a unified syllabus. Besides, Rajiv Gandhi Technology University’s affiliation to these colleges will also be confirmed.

BHOPAL: A one day National Symposium on "Technical Education in India in the next millennium – Our Preparedness" is being organised by the Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya, University of Technology here on October 23. The symposium is being jointly organised by the Technical Teacher’s Training Institute, Bhopal.

Eminent technical educationists, expert technologists and participating engineers from all parts of the country will be participating in this symposium.

Prof. PB Sharma, Vice Chancellor of Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya informed in a statement here on Thursday that the main theme of symposium is to view our present status of technical education in the country and the state. This will be done so as to examine our strengths and weaknesses, as also to identify the opportunities and threats.

The preparedness to meet the challenges of the fast approaching next millennium are also required to be critically examined so as to prepare ourselves to cater for the new and emerging areas of engineering and technology. Total Quality Management of technical education, cost effective utilisation of resources and infrastructure, modernisation and upgradation of libraries and laboratories, curriculum innovation and examination reform are some of the issues which will be discussed at this national symposium.

The symposium will be addressed by eminent educationists including Prof. SK Khanna, former Chairman AICTE, BHEL. Chair-Professor at IIT. Delhi Prof JS Rao, eminent Bio-medical engineering expert Prof SK Guha, Prof BS Bisen, eminent Micro-Biologist, Pratap Verma, Secreatry FICCI and others.