VIJAYAWADA: Digital education can reach students anywhere and help them acquire knowledge during the times of pandemic, according to Prof Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman of All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).
Addressing the tenth edition of the University Distinguished Lecture (UDL) Series, organised by SRM University-AP, Prof Sahasrabudhe said digital education was a boon that made physical presence irrelevant in education.
Speaking on ‘Higher Education in India in the Post-COVID-19’, he said in order to equip students with gadgets and internet connectivity, the Central government had undertaken a nationwide project under Bharat Net, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, to connect every corner of India through the internet.
Delivering the lecture, Satish Chandra, special chief secretary, higher education, government of Andhra Pradesh, highlighted the challenges associated with online education in respect to the Andhra Pradesh. He said that 3,000 colleges and 17 universities with 12 lakhs students in the higher education sector were affected due to the pandemic. He said however, the future of education brought a blended environment with both online and offline teaching-learning options. He opined that LMS, online platforms, gadgets such as desktops, laptops or tablets were going to be part of the new normal of the education sector. Satish Chandra said the Andhra Pradesh government was striving to help economically backward students by providing gadgets at affordable cost under various schemes.
Prof D Narayana Rao, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of SRM University-AP and others addressed the programme.
