From President’s Desk

Dear Students, Faculty, Parents, Well-wishers,

My greetings to you all!

Being an alumnus of the guardian Institute, I feel immensely privileged to speak up to you as the President of the College Development Committee of Prof. Sambhajirao Kadam College, Deur (Satara) – a dream child of Shri Mudhaidevi Shikshan Sanstha, Deur. I owe much to the Sanstha! My long association with the Institution- first as the student, subsequently as the Trustee and now as the President, CDC, gives me a great pleasure to be at the helm and equally reminds me of the duties and responsibilities towards the institution, my own alma mater!

I came from an engineering discipline. I personally believe in the mantra, ‘The only true power is knowledge, as everything (including any achievement) is derived from it!’ and expect the educational community to follow it in letter and spirit to bring about a change in changing scenario especially witnessing in Higher Education.

I wish, I should speak on what is in the offing in the domain of Higher Education, especially in view of the recently announced, “National Education Policy 2020”, which according to me, is a transformative paradigm Shift in Higher Education to Boost Self Reliant India Mission- a mission launched just prior to; to be precise, on 12th May 2020 to make our economy stronger & sustainable. Its main focus is on innovations & start-up ecosystem of our country.

It’s no exaggeration if I mention that our institute is known for its quick and proactive response to National issues & polices! It can be evidenced from the fact that, the institute was quick enough to organise theme based national level webinars on NEP 2020, Intellectual Property Rights, Innovation and Creativity, Entrepreneurial Development especially to explore the elements of NEP relevant to the Self-Reliant India Mission & create awareness about it among students and teachers.

How is Self-Reliant India mission interwoven with NEP 2020?

Self-Reliant India mission is founded on FIVE pillars:

• An Economy that brings Quantum Jump

• Infrastructure –that becomes the identity of modern India.

• A Technology driven system to fulfill the dreams of the 21st century

• Our Vibrant Demography which is a source of energy.

• Strength of demand and supply chain that is to be harnessed to its full potential.

And these five pillars are supported by FOUR Es: Education, Employability, Employment and Entrepreneurship to build a self-reliant India. These FOUR Es, should be interwoven properly, with the economy occupying the pivotal position to support the five pillars of Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Education is the starting point for growth and development of any society. It provides substratum of workforce to the economy.

Hence, economy and education need to be juxt-a-posed. Education should lead to employability. Employability should make employment possible and should facilitate entrepreneurship.

Employability has been remained a tough challenge for both job seekers and employers for many years now.

The Indian education system was being questioned for its lack of effectiveness. Industries struggled to find job-ready talent and job-seekers grappled to find a job. Industry-Academia gap is probably the most discussed thing by employers and job seekers!

Can NEP 2020, bridge the much needed job readiness gap?

I answer it affirmatively! Yes, NEP is designed to deliver education as per industry trends & patterns. Future of our country looks promising as this NEP is focused on the holistic development of the emerging workforce i.e. students.

Can NEP, create a roadmap for entrepreneurship?

Yes, of course, because

• NEP promotes integration of main stream education with vocational education & industry;

• It is focused on research & innovation by setting up industry-academic linkages, start-up incubation centres & technology development centres;

• It also promotes business-focused approach; creating entrepreneurship oriented programmes which will lead to entrepreneurial revolution

In my opinion, NEP 2020 has laid a foundation for 6^th pillar of self-reliant India Mission & this 6^th Pillar is…. education in the form of insurance and assurance for the self-Reliant India Mission. If implemented effectively, it will make India a key research and development destination of the world.

Are the institutes of higher education prepared to head on the challenge?

It is in this context, I would like to share some distinctive initiatives relevant to the proposed NEP that our institute has taken.

Our institute is the only institute in Maharashtra which has created its own ecosystem for construction of knowledge, entrepreneurship & employment by offering self-designed professional skills development courses relevant to the emerging professions such as International Trade, GST Law! We have executed 25 MOU’s with Industries which are functional to provide learner-centric education through experimental learning, on-job training & internships to our students; thus thereby, instilling professional skills among students & faculties to develop skilled human resource of high calibre; which is a need of our economy, society and the county as a whole. We are implementing this for last three years!

Thus, we are already one step ahead to make it happen; the NEP & Self Reliant India mission!

Dear Friends, Explore, Innovate, Research and Excel is our institutional Motto; and I am sure our institute will move ahead with a focus on exploring the elements of NEP linked to employability, entrepreneurship & ultimately the Self-Reliant India mission in years to come, with presumable, sincere and dedicated efforts of the faculty and students!

Er.Mr. Arvind Kadam,

President, CDC