Bhubaneshwar (Odisha) [India], September 5 : Over 1.25 lakh higher education students across Odisha will benefit from new technology and skill development initiatives launched by the state government, with 65 per cent of beneficiaries expected to be girl students, Higher Education Minister Suryavanshi Suraj said on Saturday.
The initiatives were announced following strategic Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with organisations including CSRBOX-IBM, Nandi Foundation, OKCL and NASSCOM, aimed at strengthening digital learning and improving employability among students, especially in remote and aspirational districts.
Speaking about the initiatives, Suraj told the media that the programmes are focused on bridging the digital divide and ensuring inclusive access to advanced skills.
The multi-agency programmes will cover more than 1.25 lakh students, with special focus on increasing participation of women in the modern workforce. Around 107 institutions located in remote areas have been prioritised under the initiative.
The skill ecosystem will include training in areas such as Artificial Intelligence, digital literacy, enterprise design thinking and financial literacy through hybrid learning models and offline project-based workshops.
Along with student-focused programmes, the state government also launched the Academic Performance Audit Portal, which will evaluate institutions on 52 key performance indicators (KPIs), and an NEP 2020-compliant Question Bank Portal aimed at improving academic transparency and quality.
The initiatives are part of Odisha’s efforts to strengthen higher education infrastructure and create better skill opportunities for students across the state.