Need to re-orient how engineering is taught: Amitabh Kant

Mumbai, Feb 16: Observing that engineering institutions have become "status-quoish", Department of Industrial Promotion and Policy Secretary Amitabh Kant today said there is need to re-orient how engineering is taught in the country.

"We need to re-orient and do a paradigm shift in the kind of engineering that is taught. It is becoming too academic," Kant said, addressing a special session in industry-academic partnerships at the Make in India Week here today.

"Engineering institutions have become extremely status-quoish," he added, asking the institutions to focus on innovation.

Interestingly, a recent report highlighted the need for an upgraded education and training system, noting that 80 per cent of the engineering graduates are "unemployable".

The Aspiring Minds National Employability Report was based on over 1,50,000 engineering students who graduated in 2015 from over 650 colleges.

Stating that India, with a billion mobile phones in use and an equal number people who have volunteered to give biometric data, presents an exciting opportunity, Kant exhorted engineering colleges to be "biggest disruptionists" in the world. He also pledged all support from the government, saying it is willing to play the role of a catalyst or a facilitator in the process.

With concerns being expressed over a long time taken to get patents, Kant said the government will introduce a system to ensure "we can get the patents in 18 months".

"We want to encourage more patents from India. We are looking at a system where within 18 months, we will register patents. This will happen within one year. While we are hiring more officers to review these patents, we will also outsource some of the work to IITs as well," the senior IAS officer said.

PTI