US institutions to help in setting up innovation varsities

American universities are keen to offer their expertise in setting up of some of the innovation universities in India and one such collaboration would be announced during President Barack Obama's visit to New Delhi later this year.

The issue was discussed at a meeting between HRD minister Kapil Sibal and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton here today.

The prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology could partner with the government for setting up an innovation university in energy sector, sources said and added that further talks would be held with MIT on the matter.

Sibal told Clinton that India will set up 14 innovation universities which will concentrate on specific areas.

Seeking for collaboration between institutions, Sibal recalled how India and the US had come together to establish world class institutions like IIT-Kanpur 50 years ago.

Though the nature of cooperation is different, there is great opportunity for the two countries to work together to create centres of excellence, he said.

Sibal said the two sides could partner in setting some of these Universities, one of which could be announced during Obama's India visit.

The HRD minister also took up with Clinton the matter of setting up an India-US Education Council which will work for furthering bilateral relations in education between the two countries.

During his meeting, Sibal discussed wide-ranging issues relating to bilateral cooperation in the field of education.

The council will have academics, entrepreneurs and government representatives as members and it will coordinate the moving forward of ties in education sector.

The areas of collaboration that the two sides are looking at include research, distant education, vocational education, skill development, exchange of faculty, models of public private partnership and also expertise for the setting up of universities.

The two leaders also discussed the use of ICT in enhancing the Teaching-learning capabilities, research collaboration Biosciences, nano-sciences and other spheres.

Clinton expressed keen interest in India's vision of building an educated and skilled society and suggested collaboration in areas of skill development as well, particularly through community colleges. Clinton also welcomed the proposal of India-US Education Council.

Earlier, Sibal met Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education and shared his vision of education particularly reforms in the sector.