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Government of Telangana Collaborates with BITS Pilani WILP

The State Board of Technical Education and Training (SBTET), a board created under the authority of the Government of Telangana, has signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS) Pilani Work Integrated Learning Programmes (WILP) division, to design, develop, and deploy Technology Enabled Laboratories (TEL) for polytechnics and engineering institutions in Telangana.

SBTET shall fund the Government TEL project. It will be executed in multiple phases for two years, i.e., from designing the remote and virtual labs in select domains and programs to developing the software interface and selecting the lab equipment, to developing lab exercises and associated digital content, and finally, training several faculty members who shall deploy the labs in few select institutions.

Virtual and remote labs support experiential learning and innovative solutions.

Intending to provide comprehensive experiential learning for the students, over the years, BITS Pilani WILP has deployed about ten remote labs (physical labs, which are accessible from anywhere and at any time) and 26 virtual labs (that allow for software simulation studies of various phenomena, which may be highly challenging to study in the natural environment or physical laboratories).

The experiential learning that is acquired by leveraging these labs (via simulations, hands-on, and other practical assignments that involve the use of hardware and software) helps students to connect practice with theory — thereby enabling them to foster innovative ideas and solutions to address various challenges and opportunities in the real world.

Affordable, sustainable, flexible, and scalable access to state-of-the-art labs

Besides multiple other endeavors, SBTET aims to ensure that the students pursuing technical education across the state have access to quality labs that enable experiential learning. However, the setup labs is not just about software, cloud hosting, and access control, as it requires significant investments and an entire ecosystem, including vital instructions, license management, and support.

Through this collaboration with BITS Pilani WILP, SBTET intends to develop a system that primarily leverages the scale operations efficiently (considering that these labs could cater to the learning requirements of thousands of students across the state of Telangana) — so that various challenges, including those related to manpower, logistics, and costs could be mitigated successfully.

Speaking on the occasion of signing the MoU, Prof. G. Sundar, Director, Off-Campus Programmes & Industry Engagement, BITS Pilani, remarked, “Over the last several years, we at BITS Pilani have designed, developed, and deployed several remote and virtual labs, especially for the Work Integrated Learning Programmes for working professionals from across India and the globe. Such labs carry the immense potential to be developed as shared resources, which students from many institutions can use. As an Institution of Eminence, I am delighted that we will be sharing some best practices and expertise in this domain with the world beyond BITS Pilani for the larger good of students, other institutions, and society. And this collaboration with SBTET is our first major step in this regard, which makes this collaboration even more special.”

Post the official commencement of the TEL project, Shri Navin Mittal, IAS, Commissioner, Collegiate Education & Technical Education, Government Telangana, said, “From technical education’s perspective, optimal skills development in our students certainly requires them to have access to the relevant experiential learning opportunities; with this in mind, we had visited the virtual and remote labs at the Hyderabad campus of BITS Pilani. We realized that their labs facilitated hands-on experiences and provided an environment for extensive research, even in some of the most sophisticated domains. The awe-inspiring idea having such labs, which thousands students across our state could share, will be a reality soon. And through this collaboration with BITS Pilani WILP, we also acknowledge their overall contributions towards the technology vision for the Government of the state of Telangana.”
About BITS Pilani:
BITS Pilani is an Institution of national reputation, known for providing technical education of the highest standards and is well recognized for its innovations and strong links with industry. It is consistently ranked as the best private engineering & technology institution by leading ranking agencies and publications. MHRD, Govt. of India, in August 2018, announced BITS Pilani as one of the country’s first six Institutions of Eminence. It is one of the few universities that has created a standardized framework for achieving a vibrant environment that successfully inculcates an ambiance for experiential and cooperative learning and education. BITS Pilani views education as a continual engagement and experience and ensures that the learning experience is integrated seamlessly across its classrooms and laboratories and in the industry, as exemplified by its Practice School and Work Integrated Learning Programmes.
About BITS Pilani Work Integrated Learning Programmes (WILP)
India has a large and qualified professional workforce, which must and will continue to grow in size, complexity, and quality. Given the nature of modern professions and the acquired reputation of Indian professionals in these roles, continual learning and higher educational qualifications are necessary for the nation to succeed within and compete globally. Work Integrated Learning Programmes of BITS Pilani (WILP) are degree/diploma/certificate programs developed and conducted by BITS Pilani in association and jointly with organizations representing various industry sectors.

This article was shared with Prittle Prattle News as a Press Release.
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