By Raqib Hameed Naik, TwoCircles.net
New Delhi: At least 187 different universities across India submitted hundreds of proposals to conduct different course under Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) in order to garner the best international experience into the educational system in the country and enable interaction of students and faculty with the best academic and industry experts from all over the world. But minority institutions like Maulana Azad National Urdu University and Jamia Hamdard surprisingly didn’t submit even a single proposal for conducting any course, reveals RTI.
The Govt. of India had approved Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) in Higher Education in 2015 and launched it on November 30 the same year. The program was aimed at tapping the talent pool of scientists and entrepreneurs, internationally to encourage their engagement with the institutes of Higher Education in India so as to augment the country’s existing academic resources, accelerate the pace of quality reform, and elevate India’s scientific and technological capacity to global excellence.
According to an RTI reply which Twocircles.net filed with Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, which was designated as the National Coordinating Institute for GIAN, zero proposals were submitted by Jamia Hamdard and Maulana Azad National Urdu University whereas Jamia Millia Islamia submitted 63 proposals out of which 35 were accepted and Aligarh Muslim University submitted 23 proposals out of which 17 were accepted.
“MANUU should have submitted the proposals in the interest of the students. I don’t know the reasons why no proposal was sent. It was a good opportunity for the students and their exposure,”Tajamul Islam, MANUU student and Ex-President of its student union told TwoCircles.net.
A total of 1,417 courses were approved after proposals were submitted by 187 universities across India out of which 921 courses have been completed. Thirty-three proposals were withdrawn and 153 courses are upcoming.
Pertinently, the proposals are submitted online by the local institute coordinator, which intends to organise the course through the national GIAN portal. Each proposal is submitted to a sectional committee. The proposing Institution has to ensure that the International Faculty can communicate in English or a suitable language that is clearly the appropriate medium of instruction for the said course.
The Chairperson of the Sectional Committee will designate all or some members of the Sectional Committee to review the proposal and give their views. The recommendation will be finalised by the Chairperson of the Sectional Committee.
The courses are primarily for credit and cover 10 to 14 hours for a typical 1 credit course over a period of at least one week covering 5 working days and 20 to 28 hours for a 2 credit course over a period of at least 2 weeks covering 10 working days and have regular evaluation mechanisms.