Karnataka inks MoU with Infosys to benefit 5 lakh students

Dr C.N.Ashwatha Narayana, the Minister for Higher Education said the MoU with Infosys will benefit about 5 lakh students and faculty belonging to higher education.

Bengaluru:The Department of Collegiate & Technical Education (DCTE) under its ‘Help Educate’ initiative entered into an MoU with IT pioneer Infosys aimed at transforming the way students of higher education learn and shape their careers. It is expected to benefit 5 lakh students and faculty every year. said a statement.

The MoU was signed on Wednesday at Vidhana Soudha in presence of Dr C.N.Ashwatha Narayana, the Minister for Higher Education. Presiding over the event he said, the MoU will benefit about 5 lakh students and faculty belonging to higher education. The Minister added, these facilitates blended learning and industry readiness of learners as per the aspirations of NEP-2020.

“The MoU includes three components of providing access to Infosys Springboard which has 4900+ courses and 1.6 Lakh learning resources, providing faculty development program and supporting the government in setting up digital infrastructure by donating 15,000 de-bonded computers”, he explained.

“Infosys Springboard is a digital platform developed at a cost of Rs 35 cr by the IT major which enables to acquire multiple digital skills along with life skills. The platform comprising of virtual labs, gamification, and other interesting features also provides access to industry experts and enables to fill the gap between industry requirements and skillsets of students. About 1.6 learning resources incorporated in this includes audios, videos, animations, etc,” Narayana stated.

As per this MoU, Infosys will also join hands with the DTCE to train the faculty on a regular basis, and to begin with training of 200 teachers will be conducted at the Mysuru Infosys campus soon, he informed. The donation of 15,000 De-bonded computers by Infosys will almost end the shortage of computers in Government Diploma, Polytechnic and Engineering colleges of the state.

Out of the required 30,000 computers now 27,000 computers worth Rs 135 cr have been donated by companies under DTCE’s “Help Educate” initiative, Narayana told. Infosys which has developed Infosys Springboard at a cost of Rs 35 cr has plans of further investing Rs 750 cr to update the contents in the next 5 to 10 years, he stated.

Praveen Rao, Chief Operating Officer, Infosys said, “Infosys always facilitated capacity building, continuous access to world-class learning and talent building for its' employees and now this has been extended to students and faculty as well”. Kiran N.G, Program Manager Springboard, Infosys, expressing happiness about MoU, said, it will be a boost to upgrade the higher education. He added, that NEP is a first step in the right direction to empower the youth learners.