In addition to enhancing the telangana higher education environment, the department is implementing a number of efforts to raise the caliber of instruction to meet international benchmarks. One of the main efforts, according to Navin Mittal, Commissioner of the Telangana government’s Department of Collegiate and Technical Education, is implementing technology to streamline procedures. Mittal spoke with Sudheer Goutham of Elets News Network (ENN).

How is the department making sure that every one of its procedures becomes efficient and paperless?

Commissioner of the Telangana government’s Department of Collegiate and Technical Education, Navin Mittal
Commissioner of the Telangana government’s Department of Collegiate and Technical Education, Navin Mittal
The Department of Higher Education has launched a number of programs that benefit educational institutions, instructors, students, and the department itself.

The opening of the “Degree Online Services, Telangana” (DOST) portal, a single admissions gateway for all of the state’s higher education institutions, is one of the projects. Any student can access the site and register for several course selections if they wish to enroll in any telangana course. Students are chosen based on their merit. The list is created using the results of class 12. In Telangana, this has truly changed the game. Before, students had to visit each institute to obtain an application form, then submit it along with the required payment, and finally, they would be granted admission. The admissions process is now entirely paperless for Telanagana students, who simply need to input the number of their appropriate certificates, and the educational department will immediately retrieve the necessary information from the relevant department. The procedure is easy to follow. More than 2,10,000 students are now able to enroll in Telangana’s higher education institutions thanks to it.

In the commissionerate and regional offices, we have also adopted the idea of an e-office. We were able to expedite procedures and enhance communication between institutions and the State government as a result. For instance, an online order is placed with the relevant college shortly after obtaining a digitally signed copy from the principal of that college. Colleges are permitted to verify the progress of their applications or complaints as well.

The third action taken is the creation of a fee management system by Vijaya Bank, a public sector bank. All government-run schools are connected to a platform that allows students to conveniently pay their fees at any bank branch, online, using an electronic transfer, credit card, debit card, UPI payment interface, or by any other means. All of the government’s postsecondary educational institutions have discontinued accepting cash fees.

The BioMetric Attendance System is the fourth change we have made to the technical education department and one of the state institutions. We plan to implement the system in all State government organizations during the next few months. Since education would be meaningless without students, it helps to ensure student attendance.

What are the most recent strategies the Department has implemented to support efficient learning when it comes to technology in the classroom?

In the technical education department, we have put in place a digital evaluation system. Every answer sheet in the system is uploaded online and given to assessors. It assists us in avoiding any queries that are not verified. Additionally, it has made it easier for teachers to assess the answer papers at any time or place. We have abandoned the practice of setting up camps for evaluations in the past. In order to assist the department in handling data on technical institutes and students, we are also developing an institute management system.

We have also put a lot of effort into developing the curriculum. For instance, starting with the academic year 2018–19, the State’s polytechnic curriculum underwent a comprehensive overhaul. We’ve improved its adaptability and usefulness. Telangana has also embraced the model curriculum for engineering colleges that the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) has already issued.

We have also made an effort to enhance our grading scheme. Instead of creating an absolute grading system, we are attempting to build a relative one.

What goal motivates the Telangana government to enhance the state’s educational landscape?

Three items are part of the State Government’s vision. Enhancing the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER), which is now at 36%, should come first. The government’s major objective is ensuring that every student in the state has access to education, despite Telangana’s GER being almost 10% higher than the national average. Aside from that, the government has started a number of programs for the less fortunate and economically disadvantaged groups in society.

Ensuring basic infrastructure in the public and private sectors is the government’s second area of priority. The upkeep of the infrastructure, which consists of the buildings, labs, libraries, furnishings, equipment, and other necessities, is a major priority.

Enhancing overall teaching and learning quality is the third item on the list. To raise the standard, the State’s education system incorporates the newest techniques.

What message do you have for the student fraternity?

We should all be leaders in this regard, in addition to being prepared for the education and industrial revolutions 4.0. This is true because there is no excuse for not becoming a leader given the kind of numbers we have.