Syllabus Section- Polity and Governance

Why in the news?

• Union Education Minister has recently inaugurated 46 online AICTE Training and Learning (ATAL) Academy Faculty Development Programmes (FDPs) to train teachers of higher education institutions associated with All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) in emerging areas in technology.

About Atal Faculty Development Programmes (FDPs)

• The FDPs will be conducted in 22 Indian states.

• The online FDPs will be conducted according to the new National Education Policy (2020).

• The main objective of ATAL Academy is to provide quality technical education in the country and to promote research and entrepreneurship through training in various emerging fields. IITs, IIITs, NITs CU and research labs are organizing these ATAL FDPs.

• These programmes will help Indian students get acquainted with new technological developments and choose it as a career.

Achievements

• Book of World Records, London acknowledges the training of over one lakh people in 1,000 programs under ‘FDP’ as a world record, under which 1,000 online FDPs in over 100 emerging areas will benefit one lakh faculty members across premier institutions like IITs, NITs, and IIITs.

• Out of 1000, 499 FDPs have already been completed with more than 70,000 faculty members already trained.

• In 2019-20, 185 five-day face-to-face FDPs in nine thrust areas — Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Block-chain, Robotics, Quantum Computing, Data Sciences, Cyber Security, 3D Printing & Design, and Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality — benefited around 10,000 participants.

Source- PIB