CM Nitish Seeks Inclusion of Nalanda Sites in UNESCO List

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today made a strong demand to include Nalanda historical sites in the UNESCO heritage list as had been done for Bodh Gaya.

He demanded the Centre make an earnest effort for inclusion of Nalanda sites in UNESCO list.

"As we are putting sincere efforts for Nalanda University, similar hard work is needed for winning UNESCO status for Nalanda historical sites," Kumar said while addressing a function on release of a book by former chief minister and JD(U) leader Jagannath Mishra here.

Kumar said the UNESCO tag attracts more tourists, particularly foreigners, to a site.

He said the number of foreign tourists visiting Bihar was expected to rise to 10 lakh in 2012 which signals that the state has emerged as a choice of tourists from outside the country.

He said more foreign tourists were coming now to Bihar than Goa. "If we manage to increase 3-4 more international level sites, this number can multiply."

The chief minister also asked the Centre to assist the state in excavation of historical sites of Vaishali, Chirand in Chhapra and Vikramshila in Bhagalpur district to convert them into international level tourist spots.
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Global design competition for Nalanda University !!

Nalanda Global University has launched the much-awaited architectural design competition. It is open to both Indian and foreign firms. The design competition is the first important step towards deciding the masterplan of the varsity. Nalanda University VC Gopa Sabharwal told
HT, that the last day for applying for the design competition is January 8. An expert committee headed by the university advisor, AR Ramanathan, who has had the experience of working for the National Gallery and other big projects, would announce the list on January 22.

“As per the norms of the council of architecture, only those foreign firms can apply, which have a joint venture with an Indian firm,” said Sabharwal, adding that the idea is to have a cutting edge architecture for the university even while keeping its legacy intact.

“The history of Nalanda is central to the design of the university. The competition focuses on the culture of the region, without losing out on any of the modern principles of social and environmental awareness. It has to be an environment-friendly campus. It will produce as much energy as it will consume,” said Sabharwal.

The vice chancellor said, expression of interest (EoI) has been invited from all the eligible architects and architectural firms. “Once the design is finalised, real activity will start on site,” she added.

The next board meeting of the Nalanda University is scheduled in Patna on February 4, next year. The chancellor of the university, Dr Amartya Sen and all other board members will attend the meeting, said the VC.

The next day, the Nalanda monitoring committee, headed by planning commission deputy chairman, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, will meet in Rajgir to review the progress. Before that, a number of dignitaries from Buddhist countries are also expected to be in Patna to attend the international Buddhist conclave.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar has been keen to start at least some course in Nalanda University from 2014. During the last board meeting, Dr Amartya Sen had also exuded optimism, that the first batch of 100 students in two schools - School of Historical Sciences and the School of Environment and Ecology - could start in 2014.

“We are also working hard to make it happen. Hopefully, the construction work will begin in 2013. Before starting the university, even on a limited scale, we will need some infrastructure and accommodation,” she added.
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Proposed Departments and Schools of Nalanda University

 At initial phase of of Nalanda university, These would be major departments:-

•     School of Historical Studies

•     School of Environment and Ecological Studies

•     School of Buddhist Studies, Philosophy and Comparative Religion
•  
•     School of Languages and Literature

•     School of International Religion and Peace Studies

•     School of Information Sciences and Technology

•     School of Business Management (Public Policy and Development Studies)

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High Level Meet on the Future of Nalanda International University !!

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna on Thursday welcomed the core committee of the proposed Nalanda International Committee and held talks on a host of issues and controversies that has besieged the plan causing inordinate delay in its implementation.

Following the announcement of the appointment of Nobel Prize winner Dr. Amartya Sen as the first Vice Chancellor of the proposed university, the Chief Minister hosted a luncheon for Dr. Sen, former Foreign Minister of Singapore George Yo, Lord Meghnad Desai, Prof. Tansen Sen, Dr. Gopa Sabarwal, Member of the Parliament N. K. Singh, Prof. Sugata Bose, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, Education Minister P. K. Shahi, and other dignitaries at his residence on Anie Marg.

During the meeting that lasted nearly six hours, it was decided that the university will become fully functional from 2014 and the selection for the appointment of teachers would begin from July 2013.

Later talking to the reporters, Dr. Sen said that initially the School of Historical Studies and the School of Ecology and Environmental Studies would start operating. Each school will have up to 100 students and 13 highly-qualified teachers whose pay scale would be comparable to those teaching under SARC guidelines, he said.

Construction for the university campus would begin in 2013.

Kumar told the committee to ensure the university also offered courses in economics and basic science.

The visitors later had dinner hosted by ADRI Secretary Shaibal Gupta at his residence.
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Now, Bihar 7th on list of tourist arrivals !!

Bihar ranked seventh among 10 states of the country in receiving the highest number of foreign tourists last year. The states ahead of it in the list include Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and West Bengal. Buddhist sites like the Mahabodhi temple at Bodh
Gaya, the ruins of ancient Nalanda University and the Stupa at Vaishali, which yielded Lord Buddha’s relic, have remained hot favourites among tourists, particuarly from the Buddhist countries.

Besides, the recently launched cruise tourism in river Ganga, too, has also attracted a number of foreign tourists from Germany, UK and France.

Enthused by the trend, tourism minister Sunil Kumar Pintu said, “Take a look at the footfall of foreign tourists in the state. A ministry of tourism report says, one out of six foreign tourists is heading towards Bihar to visit our historical sites. It also says, that the state received more holidayers from abroad than Goa, which is considered the hotspot among foreigners due to its beaches.”

The minister said, that the number of foreign tourists in the state was expected to cross 10 lakh this year. “More than 8.4 lakh foreign tourists have already visited different historical sites of the state between January and August this year and more are expected in the coming tourism season, which will start from October. In 2011, the total number of international tourists coming here was pitched at 8.78 lakh.” he added.

Pintu said, the latest report showed a more than ten-fold increase in the number of foreign tourists in the last one decade. “Not just that. We have started taking steps to attract more foreign as well domestic tourists. A road show on Bihar tourism was conducted during an international meet at Mauritius last month. And, we have also participated in the ongoing four-day world travel market (WTM), 2012, in London,” he said. Pintu said, out of nine pavilions booked by India tourism, one has been allotted to Bihar tourism to showcase its rich historical background for the benefit of foreigners.
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Global Higher Education System in India and Nalanda University

Universities are both ancient and modern institutions. The origin of universities in keeping with the ancient western model goes back to medieval Europe with the establishment of Bologna (1088), Paris (1150), Oxford (1167), and Cambridge (1209). The University of Nalanda was founded in the 5th century B.C. and was destroyed in 1100 A.D. The oldest universities in the United Kingdom (UK) such as Oxford and Cambridge were founded as Church Universities with a view to training of clergymen and teachers. However, the university in its modern sense started in the later part of the 19th century. They had a more secularized curricula and a teaching and research were their main objectives. The first such university was the University College of London established in 1826. It was referred to as the first godless university in England. The industrial revolution, expansion of universal franchise and the rise of professional societies contributed to the establishment of civic universities such as Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield, and Bristol in Britain.

Colonialism was a main force in spreading university education in developing countries. The colonial masters particularly the British established universities in their colonies. Other countries that did not have any colonial experience such as Japan, Thailand and Ethiopia established the western model of universities. The medium of language of university education also changed with the expansion of the university system. Initially Latin and later German dominated scholarship and science whereas English is the academic language now.

Higher education is not an isolated phenomenon subject to the vagaries of external and internal pressure. However, there is a strong belief that universities and cemeteries are not willing to change or move but both have to change due to internal and external forces. Let us take the external pressure. They are due to globalization and internationalization and multi-nationalization of university education. Globalization comprises broad economic, political and other trends and it also involves Information Communication Technology (ICT), the use of English, the rise of the private universities, the marketisation of higher education, and related aspects that are more or less inevitable results of the rapidly diversifying and changing global environment.

Internationalization means a package of policies that government or education institutions develop to cope with the global environment such as providing academic programme in foreign languages and sponsoring students to continue their studies abroad. Multinationalization means offering country’s programmes in other countries. It covers the application of another country’s education programmes, IT initiates, and courses and syllabi in a country’s responding to the needs and desire to be part of globalization. Multinationalization functions by means of branch campuses, franchising, joint degree offering called twining, online programme, distance mode of delivery and e-learning. As a result, well established universities are setting up offshore or branch campuses in other countries. Australia is very active in the process of branch campuses and Singapore has been particularly respective for branch campuses. It is referred to as the McDonalization of higher education.
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Statement by the Prime Minister at Plenary Session of 7th East Asia Summit

Following is the text of the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh’s statement at the Plenary Session of 7th East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia today:

“I thank Prime Minister Hun Sen for his very warm hospitality and the excellent arrangements for the 7th East Asia Summit.

I would like to begin by complimenting ASEAN members, not only for their progress in creating an integrated ASEAN community, but for their leadership in launching wider regional initiatives such as the ARF, EAS and the ADMM+. For India, ASEAN has been the bridge to the East. It is also central to the evolution of a regional architecture and its different cooperative frameworks.

Excellencies, India’s security and prosperityare vitallylinked to the Asia Pacific region. Our vision for this region is rooted in cooperation and integration. Forums such as the East Asia Summit can help create a large economic community in this region that will accelerate development and enhance prosperity, besides reinforcing mutual understanding and confidence in the region.

This Summit is witness to important events and changes taking place in the Asia Pacific region. Concerted effort and collective action on the part of the countries gathered in this room can strengthen mutual understanding and help us address shared challenges. For this, it would be necessary to develop a common set of principles, establish cooperative mechanisms and deepen regional economic integration. We, therefore, welcome the launch of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership negotiations today. We also support the Phnom Penh Declaration on East Asia Summit Development Initiative.

Connectivity is vital for increased commerce, contact and cooperation between our countries. We must quickly implement the EAS Declaration on ASEAN Connectivity, adopted at our last Summit. Early identification of specific projects and the evolution of innovative financing mechanisms for their implementation would also help move forward this important aspect of our cooperation.

Excellencies, India has been happy to carry forward several EAS-related initiatives. Following the EAS Declaration on Malaria Control, we have proposed a programme on capacity building and vector control management systems to our ASEAN partners earlier this year and look forward to cooperating with other EAS members. Earlier this month, we held the EAS-India Workshop on Building a Regional Framework for Earthquake Risk Management in New Delhi. This will augur well for our cooperation in responding to natural disasters. Finally, the Nalanda University project, in which your support has been invaluable, is gaining momentum and we expect the first two schools to commence teaching in the academic year 2014-15.

Excellencies, though EAS is still new, we have built an impressive agenda for economic cooperation and for addressing some of our common challenges. We should try and bring to bear the same spirit in addressing our differences. I have no doubt that, together, we can create an open, balanced, inclusive and rule-based architecture in the region for our collective security, stability and prosperity.”
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