Odisha boosts AI in higher education

Bhubaneswar: To accelerate technology-driven learning, the State Higher Education department has partnered with Odisha Knowledge Corporation Limited (OKCL) through an MoU signed on Saturday. The collaboration will expand access to AI training, digital skills, and career guidance for college students across Odisha. It will strengthen technology-driven education, student employability, and practical industry experience.

It will also create opportunities for internships, apprenticeships, entrepreneurship and work-based learning, alongside initiatives for faculty development and institutional capacity building.

Speaking at the MoU signing ceremony, State Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj said the collaboration would create new opportunities for students, faculty and higher education institutions across the State. He stressed the need to move beyond conventional classroom learning and equip students with digital capabilities, practical skills, industry exposure and entrepreneurial abilities to meet the demands of a rapidly changing job market.

The collaboration, guided by Higher Education Commissioner-cum-Secretary Aravind Agrawal, seeks to leverage technology, innovation and capacity building to advance the objectives of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

OKCL Managing Director Manoranjan Puthal said the MoU marked an important step towards strengthening Odisha’s knowledge, skilling and digital transformation ecosystem. The partnership would focus on scalable and outcome-oriented solutions for students, educators and institutions, he said.

Under the agreement, students will be offered programmes in AI, digital literacy, communication skills, career readiness and other emerging domains. Initiatives such as hackathons, ideathons, internships, apprenticeships and work-integrated learning are also envisaged. For faculty, the collaboration will provide AI orientation, digital proficiency training and faculty development programmes.

Institutions will receive support in areas including accreditation, quality assurance, NEP implementation, digital governance, research, innovation, entrepreneurship, and industry partnerships.

The partnership will also facilitate capacity building in emerging fields such as data science, cyber security, Internet of Things and Industry 4.0. Another focus will be inclusive and multilingual education, including technology-enabled tribal language learning initiatives. The MoU also provides scope for digital learning solutions and technology-enabled academic, skilling and institutional development programmes.

The two sides may expand the areas of collaboration based on the emerging needs of Odisha’s higher education sector.

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The Hans India