By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: Secretary, Higher Education, Shri K. Sanjay Murthy; Secretary Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Shri Atul Kumar Tiwari and Secretary Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education Shri Sanjay Kumar Monday held a curtain raiser press conference on the upcoming 3rd Education Working Group meeting and precursory events in Bhubaneswar.
While addressing the press conference Shri Murthy informed that the 3rd meeting of the Education Working Group will be held in Bhubaneswar from April 27-28, 2023 and the precursor events to the G20 Education Working Group Meetings would be held from April 23-26, 2023. A special exhibition on the theme of “Future of Work” will be organized and will be open to public between April 23-25 and then on April 27 & 28.
Delegates from G20 countries would be attending these meetings. The programmes under the Education Working Group, selection of themes and ensuring reach to the youth of the country are being led by the vision and guidance of the Union Minister for Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, he added. In case of Odisha, where the theme is ‘Future of Work’, the activities are based on the vision that there should be widespread deliberations and effective outreach in every district on the emerging skilling requirements and the need for continuous skilling reskilling and up-skilling as relevant to the district.
While addressing media Shri Atul Kumar Tiwari said that with ground-breaking advancements and digitization, the nature of work is witnessing a fundamental change. This change will also bring immense economic potential while augmenting productivity gains and stimulating growth.
He further said that the G20 nations are also experiencing this active evolution in several sectors and can only prepare the youth by equipping them with relevant skills, speed, and agility. Embracing this transformation and finding solutions for the most pressing issues related to the future of work, we look forward to the upcoming third meeting of the Education Working Group in Bhubaneshwar. The precursor events and an exhibition, bringing together experts, stakeholders, and thought leaders will help to explore a coordinated approach to prioritize reforms, reimagine learning, redefine talent and at the same time create frameworks for preparing social, political, and business leaders for future of work, he added.
Shri Sanjay Kumar spoke about integration of skills in the school curriculum and equipping children with a range of future skills to set them on a course of lifelong learning. He informed about the breakout session on ‘integration of skills in school curriculum’ in the workshop on Future of Work between India and Singapore on 25th April of the Working group meeting. The discussions will also be organised on ‘equipping children with a range of future skills’ to set them on a course of lifelong learning he added. The Secretary also informed that as recommended under NEP 2020, exposure to skill Education from class 6 will be provided.It will be optional for class 9 and 10 and compulsory for class 11 and 12.
During the conference, it was informed that drawing inspiration from the Prime Minister’s call to make ‘Jan Bhagidari’ a strong element of India’s G20 Presidency, month long events have commenced in the state of Odisha from April 1, 2023 which is also celebrated as “Utkal Dibasa” or “Odisha Day”. So far, 86,000 people have participated in the Jan Bhagidari events, such as, Quiz contests, Essay competitions, Declamation contests, Yuva Samvad etc. Seminars have been organized on various topics related to Future of Work like workshop on drone application in agriculture, future of robotics, climate change impact on livestock productivity, future of chemical engineering, decarbonization aluminum production, – towards net zero, etc. Students from schools, ITIs, Polytechnics, colleges including engineering colleges, NSTI and beneficiaries of Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS) are participating in these events. These programmes and activities are Youth -Led and Women-Led. Engagement Groups of G20, viz., Start up 20, B20 etc. are also providing support to organize these events across the state.
Precursor events are being organized in collaboration with various institutions, such as, IIT Bhubaneswar, IIM Sambalpur, Central University, NIT, IMMT Bhubaneswar, Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. Deloitte. CII and USIBC are industry connects for the various events. These week long deliberations would focus on strengthening international collaboration and support in germinating a Framework for Future of Work.
