Kolkata Community Portal || Kolkata Community Portal - News, Reviews, Comments & Discussion

Kalam Calls For Policy to Develop Guality Workers

By Mrs Gupta, Section News
Posted on Fri May 18, 2007 at 05:32:05 AM EST

President APJ Abdul Kalam has called for a national policy for creating a "global human development cadre for India" to evolve globally competitive youth who are more employable.

The national policy could be evolved through a team of experts drawn from ministries, professional associations and societies, the President said, while speaking at Jadavpur University this afternoon.

During his day-long visit, Kalam visited the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, the Manovikas Kendra and the National Council of Education.

Currently, 30 lakh graduates and post-graduates emerge from Indian universities every year. Taken together with 70 lakh students who pass the secondary and higher secondary board exams, the figure of employable youths touches 1 crore every year. "However, there is a large gap in the availability of employable skill," the President pointed out.

Only policy will help generate the quality, knowledge and the skills to cater to all sectors of Indian as well as global economy.

The 1.2 crore units of the small-scale sector employ around 2.8 crore people. The total export of these units is expected to double in next five years, creating demand for another 2.8 crore skilled people in sectors like garments, processed foods, pharmaceuticals, electronics, precision engineering and cosmetic products.

"The universities and school educational systems need to create two cadres of personnel," Kalam said a global cadre of youth with special skills and another with higher education. These two cadres will cater to global demands.

AT IIT, Kharagpur
The Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, can help integrate the state's engineering institutions by taking a "pioneering action", suggested the President, who was there to lay the foundation for Dr BC Roy multi-speciality medical research center.

Addressing a packed auditorium, Kalam said the country is moving closer to a knowledge era and thus there's a need for a transformation of the society. "IIT Kharagpur with its inherent strength in research and teaching can take pioneering action in establishing a virtual university system in West Bengal, integrating all the engineering institutions in the state," he said.

Such a move will enable generation of "quality" human capital, vital for the knowledge era.

In the speech titled "Great Minds Emanate from Creative Environment", Kalam said generation of human capital is important also because economic development and "evolution" of "enlightened" citizens are the focus areas for the country in the next two decades. "Particularly, the School of Medical Science and Technology, with its proposed Multi-Speciality Research Hospital, has to transform into a virtual medical research university, drawing the best expertise from various institutions of the country and abroad," the President said.

Though the country's economy is growing, a major faction of the Indian population have not realised the benefits of this growth. "Nearly 220 million people have to be lifted in both rural and urban areas," he said. For realising this vision, conversion of research into applications and international cooperation are required. But along with this, there's also a need for "excellent minds" for basic science, research and teaching.

(Source - Indian Express, 18/05/07)

< It's goodbye to stadium greens | Cabinet Clears Withdrawal of SEZ in Nandigram >