Mumbai: Maharashtra will focus on industry-oriented training, artificial intelligence-based skilling and a centralised placement system to improve the employability and industry readiness of engineering and polytechnic students, Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said on Wednesday.
Technical Education Must Move Beyond Degrees And Diplomas
Patil said technical education should go beyond awarding degrees and diplomas and equip students with skills that match changing industry requirements and emerging technologies.
“Giving students only a degree or diploma is not the ultimate objective of education. They need to be made employable, industry-ready and capable of facing the opportunities and challenges posed by future technologies,” Patil said.
ISTE Initiatives Presented At Government Review Meeting
The minister was speaking during a review meeting on skill development, employability and industry readiness of engineering and polytechnic students in Maharashtra. Various initiatives proposed through the Indian Society for Technical Education (ISTE), including a Centralized Placement Platform, Centre for Future Skills and the ISTE-SmartBridge AI Skilling Initiative, were presented at the meeting.
The proposed centralised placement platform aims to bring employment, internship and apprenticeship opportunities onto a single platform. The initiative is expected to match students with opportunities based on their skills while improving coordination between educational institutions and industries.
Centre For Future Skills To Offer Training In Emerging Technologies
The Centre for Future Skills, meanwhile, has been proposed to provide students with training in emerging and advanced technologies. A presentation was also made on the ISTE-SmartBridge AI Skilling Initiative, which proposes AI training ranging from foundational to advanced levels for students.
Patil stressed the need for stronger coordination between education, industry and technology sectors to prepare Maharashtra's youth for a changing job market. He called for curricula, training and practical industry exposure to be aligned so students acquire skills relevant to employers.
The minister also directed officials to prepare a clear, outcome-oriented and time-bound roadmap for implementing skill-development programmes and take concrete decisions based on it.
The meeting was attended by Additional Chief Secretary of the Higher and Technical Education Department B. Venugopal Reddy; Maharashtra State Board of Technical Education Director and Director of Technical Education Dr Pramod Naik; Deputy Secretary Amol Mutyal; Institute of Chemical Technology Vice-Chancellor Prof Aniruddha Pandit; University of Mumbai Vice-Chancellor Ravindra Kulkarni; Shivaji University Vice-Chancellor Dr Rajnish Kamat; AICTE's Pratap Desai and other officials.
Patil said the government would focus on institutionalising such initiatives and ensuring their effective implementation, with the broader objective of taking engineering and polytechnic students from “education to skills, skills to employment and employment to an empowered future.”
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