Bhubaneswar: From next academic year onwards the engineering colleges in the state will hold classes in Odia language.
The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has given its approval for this following a meeting between the state government and AICTE September 4.
As per reports, AICTE has approved holding engineering classes in four vernacular languages, including Odia, Assamese, Urdu and Punjabi.
As per meeting the AICTE will take care of translation activities with help of Institute of Odia Studies and Research.
Earlier, the members of Institute of Odia Studies and Research met the Union Education Minister Dharmenndra Pradhan requesting him to allow teaching engineering subjects in Odia.
At present there are 88 private and eight government-run engineering colleges in the state.
An estimated 30,000 to 35,000 students take admission in these engineering colleges every year, while more than 10,000 seats remain vacant Talking to Orissa POST, Odisha Private Engineering College Association secretary Binod Dash said that the move will encourage many students to take up engineering studies.
It will also help in filling up the large number of seats that lie vacant in the engineering colleges in the state every year, he said.
“Students who are not very proficient in English will now opt for engineering courses. Students from rural areas especially of tribal area will benefit from this,” said Dash.
According to Dash, many countries such as Japan, China, France and Russia impart higher education, including engineering and medical, in their native languages instead of English.
Another meeting will be held between AICTE and Odisha government on the issue is scheduled for September 25, 2021.
Earlier this year, engineering colleges affiliated to the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) were allowed to offer courses in regional languages from the 2021-22 academic session.
The move is part of the Modi government’s push to facilitate education in one’s mother tongue, and is being advocated under the new National Education Policy.
In November 2020, the Ministry of Education (MoE) had cleared a proposal, allowing colleges to offer engineering education in mother tongue.
PNN
