Centre to improve tech education in 200 engineering colleges

Updated on: Thursday, October 29, 2009

Chennai: At least 200 engineering colleges are expected to have better faculty and research centres through the Union ministry of human resource development(TEQIP),in few years.

A project information document (PID) prepared by the World Bank says TEQIP (Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme) II, taken up at an estimated Rs 2,350 crore, 'will respond to two new issues preparing more postgraduate students to reduce shortage of qualified faculty and producing more R&D in collaboration with industry.'

It says improving quality and learning outcomes would require tackling insufficient faculty qualifications and large faculty shortage. The government of India's estimate of the production of PhDs is just 1,000 a year for a student population of 1.7 million, compared to a PhD production of 9,000 in the US and 12,000 in China. 'The consequence is teachers with bachelor degrees teaching bachelor students, and teaching methods which emphasise theoretical rote learning,' the PID says.

TEQIP project co-odinator C Chinnaraj says: 'The project will strengthen around 140 institutions to improve learning and employability of graduates through the implementation of reforms and investments. It will offer pedagogical training to faculty of 60 participating institutions through a faculty development programme, and centres of excellence in 30 of these institutions.'

The project is garnering a lot of interest in academic and industry circles because of what it has helped achieve in the first phase. In various technical institutes in Tamil Nadu, TEQIP I funded the procurement of sophisticated equipment, infrastructure development, academic reforms, and improved the interface between institutes through networking.

'It was because of the TEQIP project that 110 of our faculty were able to be trained in various fields in foreign universities in the last two years. It has also enabled professors from foreign universities to visit our institutions and interact with the faculty and students, which has inspired our students and get inputs to develop our labs. We were also able to procure expensive equipment for our labs, each costing as much as Rs 10 lakh. In the first phase we were able to develop our infrastructure. In phase II, we hope to work on R&D and on developing PG courses,' said Dr Ammasai Gounden, dean of TEQIP at NIT, Tiruchi. NIT, Tiruchi, is expecting to get Rs 15-20 crore in January 2010.

Centre to improve tech education in 200 engineering colleges

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