In a decisive push to strengthen higher education in Odisha, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj on Friday chaired a high-level meeting of Vice-Chancellors, Registrars and Post-Graduate Council Chairpersons of all government universities at the Lok Seva Bhawan Convention Centre.
The Minister conducted a comprehensive review of the functioning of the state’s universities and placed strong emphasis on filling all vacant teaching and non-teaching posts at the earliest. He directed that the entire recruitment process—from the formation of subject-wise selection committees to final appointments—be accelerated without delay.
Discussions centred on the effective implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Key focus areas included the rollout of new curricula, provision of internship opportunities for undergraduate students, and the expansion of the Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Programme (AEDP). The Minister urged universities to introduce AEDP in more courses in the coming days.
Strengthening the startup ecosystem on campuses emerged as a major priority. Minister Suraj also called for promoting high-quality research, establishing and operationalising Centres of Excellence, and ensuring that PhD scholars take up contemporary and relevant topics.
Special attention was given to artificial intelligence. The meeting deliberated on capacity-building programmes for professors, teachers and students in AI, the inclusion of AI-related courses in university curricula, and the meaningful integration of the Indian Knowledge System (IKS) with modern education.
Progress under the PM-USHA scheme was reviewed, along with the implementation of the Shaktishree scheme aimed at empowering girl students. Other important agenda items included the functioning of Internal Committees (ICs), the constitution of university Senates, and the regular holding of Senate meetings.
“Strengthening academic infrastructure, delivering quality education and ensuring an inclusive higher education system remain the government’s top priorities,” Minister Suraj stated.
The meeting was attended by Higher Education Department Commissioner-cum-Secretary Arvind Agarwal, Additional Secretaries Sangram Shekhar Panda, Dharanidhar Nanda, Pratibha Sahu, and other senior officials.
The deliberations signal a clear roadmap for Odisha’s universities to become more responsive, research-oriented and future-ready.
