The UGC, whose mandate includes promoting and coordinating university education, is taking steps to improve the quality in higher education institutions, said DP Singh.
While talking to reporters after addressing the 68th annual convocation of the MS University, Singh said the UGC has been undertaking efforts to make higher education relevant to the societal and national needs. A request has been made to the Centre to allocate more funds for education in the upcoming Union budget for 2020-21, he further added.
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“Indian higher education system has grown manifold since independence. It has now 993 universities, 3.7 crore students and 14 lakh teachers,” the UGC chairman said.
“There have been reports about unemployability of graduates coming out of our higher educational institutions. Some of the lacuna (unfulfilled space) pointed out by industry experts are lack of soft skills. We, at the UGC, are conscious of these things,” Singh said.