New Education Policy 2020 Encourages Holistic Education Through Sports and Play

Sportz Village, India's largest youth sports platform, is in support of the emphasis on holistic development of children in the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 announced by the cabinet. Once the NEP gets implemented, children will benefit from the focus on balanced and all-round development from an early age.  

Commenting on the new initiative by the Modi government Saumil Majmudar, Co-founder, CEO and Managing Director, Sportz Village said that, “The new National Education Policy is a welcome change at a time when the health, happiness and immunity of children are becoming increasingly important due to the pandemic. The new NEP includes several key points that are instrumental for the holistic development of a child. By eliminating the rigid separation between curricular and extra-curricular activities, the NEP acknowledges sports to be equally important as any other subject like English or Science, thereby increasing the Fun and Engagement that children desperately seek in a school." 

Mr Majmudar adds that through Play, children can develop physically, mentally and socially. And we have also found Play to contribute positively to academic outcomes, classroom behaviour and attendance levels. Moreover, assessment-specific reforms such as the development of the National Assessment Centre and tracking a child's progress based on learning outcomes are great initiatives as they focus on the learning progress, thereby focusing on the all-round development of a child. We expect that sports and play, will be delivered and assessed with the same rigor and structure as core academic subjects, thereby ensuring all children experience the magic of Play and Sport, and we develop a nation of healthier and fitter children through the school system. The emphasis on Vocational Education is also a great step towards all-round development of children and we hope children will be able to choose Physical Activity and Sports as a Vocational subject. We look forward to the translation of the policy to reflect in a more playful, fun and engaging school environment for children while meeting the adult goals of learning outcomes.

About Sportz Village: 

Sportz Village is India's largest youth sports platform. Established in the year 2003, Sportz Village has a philosophy of: (i) Improving the health and fitness of children, (ii) Getting everyone to experience the magic of sports. 

Edtech Venture GlobalShala Aims to Cultivate Awareness of United Nation’s SDGs Across India

GlobalShala has opened its doors for learners around the world to showcase their talent and creativity; the competition is open for Junior (up to 18 years) and Senior (18 years to 25 years)

Edtech venture GlobalShala has recently announced the launch of their one-of-a-kind “Superhero U” competition with an aim to accelerate United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals and pave the way for a new generation of responsible and sound leaders. Across countries, the winners for the same will be awarded prize money worth $90,000 which includes scholarships, internship opportunities, gift cards, and electronic gadgets. 

GlobalShala has introduced this unique competition where individuals are to invent a “Superhero” that essentially takes on universal challenges and strives to make the world a better place. In an industry first, the Superhero U competition aims to tackle the 5 P’s of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) that is People, Prosperity, Planet, Partnerships, and Peace. Hence, the Superhero created should address all these goals collectively and promote prosperity while protecting the planet, the theme of the competition which is inspired by the UN’s mission. 

Talking about the competition, Anushika Jain, Founder & CEO, GlobalShala said “Taking inspiration from the United Nations, we are trying to nurture creativity to address surrounding critical sustainability challenges around the world. As per the SDG Index 2020, countries across Europe like Sweden, Denmark, Finland, France and Germany have set the benchmark for adept sustainability practices, India still falls back at rank 117. This needs to be improved upon immensely and therefore more events, programmes and contests need to be introduced across Asia Pacific countries to inculcate awareness about SDGs for the betterment of our society. We at GlobalShala have taken upon this challenge through an out-of-the-box approach with our “Superhero U” competition to add an element of intrigue and enthusiasm for individuals to take up the challenge. We are excited to see different local as well as global perspectives on sustainability and the challenges each of their Superhero takes on.” 

The competition has opened its doors wide for creativity and has allowed candidates to submit stories, illustrations, photo collages, and even movies that demonstrate how their Superhero use their superpowers to win the day. Moreover, GlobalShala has shattered the eligibility criteria and kept the competition open to many, split into 2 categories- Junior (up to 18 years) and Senior (18 years- 25 years). The Superhero U competition has also permitted any form of submission, whether it is individual or group-led. 

Inspired by the United Nations, GlobalShala focuses on empowering students and educators through experiential learning and education to open up hopes and dreams of lifelong learners around the world. Through the GlobalShala platform, individuals have the opportunity to participate in exciting competitions and events, have a chance to earn global scholarships, receive hands-on training through global internships as well as several certifications and recognitions. 

Link for Superhero U: https://superherou.globalshala.com

About GlobalShala:

Inspired by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (mainly Education, Gender Equality and Women Empowerment), GlobalShala embraces global collaborations and is venturing to make a good world better by extending services, scholarships, and a sundry of programs.

GlobalShala is providing learners across the globe a platform to express, experience, explore and engage through various learning opportunities and internships to obtain quality jobs and sustainable economic growth through purposeful possibilities that will open up hopes and dreams of lifelong learners around the world!

Total and Indian Oil Form Joint Company in India to Offer High-Quality Bitumen Derivatives

Indian Oil Corporation, India’s largest refiner and marketer of petroleum products, and Total, broad energy company with headquarters in Paris, France, announce the formation of a 50:50 Joint Venture(JV) company that will manufacture and market high-quality bitumen derivatives and specialty products for the growing road-building industry in India. 

Total is the leading bitumen manufacturer and supplier in Europe, while Indian Oil is the largest player in the Indian bitumen market. The two companies have already an established business relationship in India, notably in LPG and fuel additives businesses. 

The new JV will combine the R&D and marketing strengths of both Indian Oil and Total to manufacture and market innovative bitumen formulations and superior quality products such as polymer-modified bitumen, crumb rubber modified bitumen, bitumen emulsions and other specialty products. The JV will set up manufacturing units across the country with cost-effective logistics solutions, keeping innovation, safety and sustainability at the helm of its operations. The JV will also explore possibilities to cater to other South Asian markets. 

“India is a strategic country for the future of Total and we are delighted by this partnership, yet another testimony of our commitment to this fast-growing market.” highlighted Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total. “Today, Total is further cementing its longstanding business cooperation with Indian Oil, into a strong and sustainable new partnership. With this agreement, we are pursuing the growth of businesses with key Indian energy players, adding to our ongoing developments in renewables, gas and power.” 

Shrikant Madhav Vaidya, Chairman of Indian Oil said: “The Indian Oil-Total joint venture company would combine Indian Oil’s credentials as India’s Flagship National Oil Company and the Total’s strength as an International Energy Major. This would cater to B2B customers involved in road infrastructure development, both in the government and private sectors and I am confident that this would start a revolution in road construction activities in the country by providing superior technology products at competitive prices”. 

He added: “This joint venture company would bring in latest technologies and formulations for Polymer Modified Bitumen (PMB) and other fast-growing non-conventional derivatives such as Cold Mix & Micro Emulsion, Block Bitumen, etc. to the Indian market. The operations of this JV would commence by taking over an existing plant of Total at Jodhpur and subsequently set up new Greenfield plants”. 

The Government of India has a strong focus on developing the country’s road infrastructure with mega projects like the ‘Bharatmala project’ which envisages development of 34,800 km of roads at an estimated investment of over Rs. 5 lakh crore in the first phase (equivalent to approximately 66 billion USD). 

The demand for aggregate material and manufactured material for the highway construction and rehabilitation sector in India is very high, especially for good-quality bitumen derivatives. The Indian Oil and Total JV will offer high-spec products using sustainable technologies. 

Agastya International Foundation’s Efforts Shines Bright During COVID 19 Pandemic

Amidst this pandemic, Aagstya has been working on developing modules to educate people on COVID-19. The teams across the country have been volunteering their hours to raise funds to buy and provide food supplies and masks to those in need. Summer camps have been conducted through online which is an integral part of Agastya’s pedagogy. The series of art and craft activities were organized like making posters and flipbooks to low-cost model making. They are designed to bring out the best of children’s’ creativity and can be made using the material available in their homes. With a specific focus on skill development, online teacher training sessions were also conducted for teachers in states like Tamil Nadu, NCR, Gujarat, Sikkim, Karnataka, AP, Odisha and others. More than 2 lakh children and 4000 plus teachers have been reached through these sessions so far in the outreach activities spanning 21 states.

The regional teams in Maharashtra and Gujrat have contributed Rs.1 lakh + towards covid-19 relief also Agastya has raised Rs.25+ lakhs for dry ration distribution. About 15000 plus beneficiaries were reached through the relief activities.

In a shining example of the innovative methods promoted by Agastya, two of our instructors, Pandurang and Balaji, converted a cow shed into a classroom when they could not conduct classes in their homes. They reached out to more than a 100 teachers through the online workshops conducted in the shed, proving that learning doesn’t have to stop.

The digital programs have not just been restricted to children. 100+ women across Maharashtra and AP who are parents of children reached by Agastya, are being taught the design thinking process, which is an iterative process that encourages innovative and out-of-the-box thinking to find solutions to problems. Through these classes, the mothers are taught to develop 21st century skills, which are an integral part of the design thinking process. They also helped to recognize and design thinking as a way of life and inspired to teach and pass on the knowledge they gained at Agastya to their peers.

"At Agastya, we believe, every crisis - unprecedented or otherwise - gives birth to an opportunity," says Ramji Raghavan, Chairperson of Agastya. “We are exploring partnerships with both corporate and government organizations to make our infrastructure and people available in the fight against COVID-19 - our Mobile Science Labs, Labs-on-Bikes and Science Centers to deliver personal protective equipment and food,” he added.

About Agastya International Foundation 

Agastya International Foundation is a non-profit Organisation based out of Bengaluru. It is one of the largest hands-on science programs in the world. Its mission is to spark curiosity, nurture creativity and instill confidence in underprivileged children and government school teachers across India.

Skill India Launches AI-Based ASEEM Digital Platform to Bridge Demand-Supply Gap of Skilled Workforce

Digital Platform 

* The portal will map details of workers based on regions and local industry demands

* Database of labour migrants in Indian states and overseas citizens who returned to India under the Vande Bharat Mission and filled SWADES Skill Card has been integrated with the ASEEM portal

* Candidate data coming to Skill India Portal from various state and central skilling schemes will be integrated including PMKVY, Fee-based Programs, National Urban Livelihoods Mission, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana and Seekho aur Kamao

In an endeavour to improve the information flow and bridge the demand-supply gap in the skilled workforce market, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) today launched ‘Aatmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping (ASEEM)’ portal to help skilled people find sustainable livelihood opportunities. Apart from recruiting a skilled workforce that spurs business competitiveness and economic growth, the Artificial Intelligence- based platform has been envisioned to strengthen their career pathways by handholding them through their journeys to attain industry-relevant skills and explore emerging job opportunities especially in the post COVID era.

Envisaging the rapidly changing nature of work and how it impacts the workforce is crucial in restructuring the skilling ecosystem with the new normal settling post-pandemic. Besides identifying major skills gap in the sectors and providing review of global best practices, ASEEM will provide employers a platform to assess the availability of skilled workforce and formulate their hiring plans. Aatmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping (ASEEM) refers to all the data, trends and analytics which describe the workforce market and map demand of skilled workforce to supply. It will provide real-time granular information by identifying relevant skilling requirements and employment prospects.

Announcing the launch of the ASEEM portal, Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Hon’ble Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, said “Driven by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ and his assertion of ‘India as a talent powerhouse’ at the India Global Week 2020 Summit,, the ASEEM portal has been envisioned to give a huge impetus to our persistent efforts to bridge the demand-supply gap for skilled workforce across sectors, bringing limitless and infinite opportunities for the nation’s youth. The initiative aims to accelerate India’s journey towards recovery by mapping skilled workforce and connecting them with relevant livelihood opportunities in their local communities especially in the post COVID era. With the increasing use of technology and e-management systems which assist in bringing in processes and intelligent tools to drive demand driven and outcome-based skill development programs, this platform will ensure we bring in close convergence and coordination across various schemes and programs operating in the skill ecosystem. This will also ensure that we monitor any sort of duplication of data and further re-engineer the vocational training landscape in the country ensuring a skilling, up-skilling and re-skilling in a more organised set up.”

Highlighting how ASEEM will bridge the demand supply gap in the skilled workforce market, Shri AM Naik, Chairman, NSDC and Group Chairman, Larsen & Toubro Limited said, “Migrant labour has been severely impacted by the socio-economic fallout of the COVID pandemic. In the current context, NSDC has taken up the responsibility of mapping the dispersed migrant population around the country and providing them the means to re-build their livelihood by matching their skill-sets to available employment opportunities. The launch of ASEEM is the first step on that journey. I am confident that the real-time information ASEEM provides to both employer and employee will add value to the labour ecosystem and contribute to building the trust among the workforce, which is essential for the recovery of the economy.”

ASEEM https://smis.nsdcindia.org/, also available as an APP, is developed and managed by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) in collaboration with Bengaluru-based company Betterplace specialising in blue collar employee management.. ASEEM portal aims at supporting decision and policymaking via trends and analytics generated by the system for programmatic purposes. ASEEM is shall help in providing real-time data analytics to NSDC and its Sector Skill Councils about the demand and supply patterns including - industry requirements, skill gap analysis, demand per district/ state/cluster​​, key workforce suppliers, key consumers​, migration patterns​ and multiple potential career prospects for candidates.​ The portal consists of three IT based interfaces -

●        Employer Portal – Employer onboarding, Demand Aggregation, candidate selection ​

●        Dashboard – Reports, Trends, analytics, and highlight gaps ​

●        Candidate Application – Create & Track candidate profile, share job suggestion ​

ASEEM will be used as a match-making engine to map skilled workers with the jobs available. The portal and App will have provision for registration and data upload for workers across job roles, sectors and geographies. The skilled workforce can register their profiles on the app and can search for employment opportunities in their neighbourhood. Through ASEEM, employers, agencies and job aggregators looking for skilled workforce in specific sectors will also have the required details at their fingertips. It will also enable policymakers take more objective view of various sectors.

Is India the second-largest CDMA market?

According to the CDMA Development Group (CDG), there are now over 100 million CDMA subscribers in India, making it the world's second-largest CDMA market. CDG made this announcement at an event in Mumbai.

While announcing this achievement, Perry LaForge, CDG's executive director said, "It's a very important day to celebrate not only in India but also for the CDMA industry. Now, India is the second largest CDMA market in the world, second to the US, and I would like to thank the Department of Telecommunication, TRAI and the Government of India for their support in achieving this milestone."

In his speech, LaForge requested to extend support from government bodies to provide more spectrum to CDMA operators in India. He said wireless broadband will be of great significance to connect the people and increasing Internet penetration in the country.

According to S P Shukla, Reliance Communication's president – Wireless, "We have changed the demography of the country in terms of mobility. Today, India has come a long way in mobile connectivity with Reliance. We have achieved this milestone as an industry because of collective efforts of operators, vendors, device and handset makers and the people."

"We remain committed to further grow and serve our ever-increasing CDMA customer base through innovative applications, superior network quality and service and attractive value-propositions. And I am happy to see that CDMA technology is bridging the digital divide," Shukla added.

Globally, Reliance Communication (RCOM) is ranked second, while Tata Teleservices holds fourth place among the top five CDMA operators.

While, Anil Sardana, Tata Teleservices Limited's managing director said, "It has always been our mission to provide quality telecom services to subscribers in India and it's a matter of pride that we have played a role in this 100 million CDMA subscriber achievement."

He pointed out that CDMA technology allows a rich telecom experience especially on the data side and are confident that in coming years that experience will only get better as 3G arrives and helps to unleash full potential of applications and services.

Also, Dr. Mukund Rajan, Tata Teleservices (Maharastra) Limited's managing director, Kanwalinder Singh, Qualcomm's senior president and also president of India and South Asia, T. Narsimhan, Sistema Shyam Teleservices Limited's deputy CEO attended the event.

According to CDG, the CDMA users' rapid growth in India is attributed to a wide selection of affordable devices – ranging from entry level handsets to feature rich smart phones and the introduction of CDMA2000 voice and data services into urban and rural areas, helping to reshape the communication culture of India.

Agencies