Education sector facing various challenges, says Deputy CM Ashwath Narayan
Bengaluru, Sep 23: Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka Dr C N Ashwath Narayan on Monday said the education sector was facing various challenges in fulfilling the needs and demands of youth in the wake of rapidly changing technologies.
"It is the need of the hour and a requirement, particularly for the education sector, to address a lot of challenges to fulfill the needs and demands of youth across the globe because they are facing various challenges, dreams and aspirations," he said at the sixth edition of Asian Summit on Education and Skills (ASES).
The three-day event, which got underway here, has been jointly organised by the India Didactics Association with the Ministry of Human Resource Development, NITI Ayog and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
Ministers and ministerial delegations from over 15 countries are taking part in the event.
Stressing on empowering the youth to grab every opportunity they get, Narayan said challenges such as caste, creed, region and finances should not hurt their aspirations.
He said merely enabling youth to be successful was not enough as they should be imparted the right education to build the future of society and work in the interest of humanity.
Whatever we learn, it is ultimately for the humanity.That has to be conveyed very strongly," said Narayan.
During a session on 'What should we do with what we know?', Anju Sharma, the principal secretary for education, Government of Gujarat, stressed on thinking out the box as Artificial Intelligence would soon replace the traditional work humans have been doing so far.
"A robot may come, sit, listen and later retrieve whatever information is provided to it. It can do the job which human beings have been doing.
Hence we have to think out-of-the-box because machines will be able to do all that human beings have been doing on a routine basis," she pointed out.
On the transformation education sector may require in the wake of emerging technologies, Sharma said teachers have to be mentors rather than imparting unilateral teaching.
The education sector has to understand the dynamics of industry too and hence there should be constant interaction between the two, Sharma pointed out.
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Mamata visits Bhabanipur EVM strong room, warns against counting irregularities
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee early Friday warned against any attempt to tamper with the counting process, hours after she visited an EVM strong room in Bhabanipur, alleging possible malpractice.
Banerjee, who emerged around 12:07 am after spending nearly four hours at the counting centre for her Bhabanipur constituency housed in Sakhawat Memorial School in south Kolkata, said only one person would be allowed inside the designated counting area.
"Either the candidate or one agent can stay upstairs. I have also suggested installation of a CCTV camera for the media," she told reporters.
Stressing the need for transparency, she said, "It is essential to maintain transparency. People’s votes must be protected. I rushed here after receiving complaints. The central forces initially did not allow me to enter."
Sounding a stern note ahead of the May 4 counting, she added, "If there is any plan to tamper with the counting process, it will not be tolerated."
On Thursday evening, Banerjee had reached the Bhabanipur Assembly segment counting centre, which houses the strong room for EVMs used in the April 29 polling, citing suspicion of tampering with the machines.
She entered the premises along with her election agent and remained inside for hours, even as Kolkata Mayor and TMC candidate from the Kolkata Port segment Firhad Hakim reached the spot but could not meet her.
"I reached here upon learning that the chief minister has arrived. But I couldn’t meet her since she was already inside the premises, exercising her right as a candidate to visit strong rooms. I wasn’t allowed there. I will not be able to confirm what exactly is transpiring inside," Hakim said.
The development coincided with protests by TMC candidates Kunal Ghosh and Shashi Panja outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in north Kolkata, where they staged a sit-in alleging irregularities and possible tampering of EVMs stored in strong rooms, leading to face-offs between TMC and BJP supporters.
Earlier in a video message, Banerjee had urged party leaders, workers and polling agents to maintain a 24-hour vigil on EVM strong rooms, alleging that the BJP could attempt to tamper with the machines before counting begins.
Her remarks come amid heightened political tension in the state following a fiercely contested Assembly election, with parties closely monitoring arrangements and raising concerns over transparency.
