VCs of Indian varsities to meet at KIIT today

Bhubaneswar: Over 500 Vice Chancellors, academic administrators, officials of apex higher education agencies and educationists from across the country and abroad will attend the Annual General Meeting of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) here today.

A National Seminar on 'Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) will be held during the three-day 88th AGM of AIU, an apex body of higher education in the country being organised at the KIIT University here.

"A host of important issues relating to the future of higher education in which private partners have to play a major role will be discussed during the annual meet," AIU President R B Lal told reporters.

"In order to provide quality education, the government cannot function in isolation without partnership with private sector and philanthropists," said Lal, who is also Vice Chancellor of Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Allahabad.

Through the brain storming sessions, the VCs will discuss whether the scheme of RUSA is viable or not and whether it will bring about desired results in elevating our higher education system to world class standards.

The meet will consist of an Interaction Session with Heads of apex bodies including heads of government and non government agencies, national and international.

Dignitaries from HRD Ministry, Planning Commission, Government of Gujarat and various other places will be gracing the occasion.

KIIT University was organising this meet in Odisha after a gap of long 67 years. Earlier it was organised by erstwhile Ravenshaw College, now a university.

Dr Achyut Samanta, Founder of KIIT and KISS said, after organising prestigious Indian Science Congress, Eurasian Silk Road Consortium and many more national and international conferences and seminars successfully, KIIT is going to organise this VCs' meet.