December 6, 2011, Washington DC: The second day of the Indo-US Education Conclave 2011 at Pune, India saw the Conference Inauguration, a glittering awards function, and a round of  discussions between Indian and US delegates. The day started with the Conference Inauguration by Mr. Sharad Pawar, Union Minister for Agriculture & Food Processing Industries, Government of India.

The event is being organized by Alliance for US India Business (AUSIB), Dr. D.Y.Patil Vidyapeeth, Pune and State Legislative Leaders Foundation (SLLF).

The inauguration was followed by the presentation of the Dr. D.Y. Patil University (DPU) Awards. This year the awards were presented to Padmabhushan Prof. P.V. Indiresan, Former Director IIT- Chennai, Jane Schukoske, Former Executive Director, US Education Foundation for India, Dr. A. Gnanam, Former Vice Chancellor, Bharathidasan, Madras and Pondicherry Universities Chairman, NAAC. The other recipients were Dr. Anand Sarup, Former Education Secretary, Government of India, Mr. Shrikantdada Patil, Managing Director, Shri Gajanan Maharaj Shikshan Sanstha and Mr. Anand Mahindra, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Mahindra & Mahindra. Mr. Patil and Mr. Mahindra were not present in person to collect the awards.

In his speech, Mr. Sharad Pawar emphasized the need for India and the US to work together as partners. Stating that the student exchange programmes between the two countries would act as a bridge between the two nations, he said, “Brain drain has turned into brain gain.”“Indian education needs to understand the impact of the interactions and act accordingly. “Dialogue will help remove all roadblocks in the education sector,” he concluded.

In the Summit Talk that followed post the 20-minute tea break, Mr.Stephen Lakis, President and CEO, State Legislative Leaders Foundation (SLLF) emphasized that they were intimately aware of the opportunities that the conclave presents to the educational representatives.

The other speaker, Dr V.Prakash, Scientist,Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), India, enumerated with the aid of slides how the discussions should proceed and what the main focus of the discussions should be.

The second session was on ‘Opportunities for Expanding & Deepening Indo US Education Ties.’ Chaired by Prof. (Dr.) Arun Nigvekar, Former Chairman, UGC, the participants presented both Indian and US perspectives. Ms.Jane Schukoske, CEO, Institute of Rural Research and Development, talked about rural development and her work with NGOs. She mentioned the challenges as a complex web where both nations would be working together.

Dr. Ms. Diana Davies, Vice Provost for International Studies, Princeton University spoke on the importance of a robust faculty for an educational institute. Prof. Tyler Stovall, Dean of the Undergraduate Division, College of Letters and Science, University of California spoke in detail about how a financial crisis caused a rethink of the university’s traditional policies, leading to increase in the number of international students at the university. The Indian outlook was presented by Prof. K.B.Powar, Advisor, Dr. D.Y.Patil Vidyapeeth, Pune and Mr. N. Ramaswamy, Partner, Management Consulting Organization, KPMG Advisory Services Pvt. Ltd. 

Post lunch, the session on distance, vocational and online education was conducted. This was followed by a meeting on Bi-National Policy initiatives. The day ended with a special address by Mr. Sushil Kumar Shinde, Union Minister for Power, Govt. of India which was followed by the last session of the day – India!- A US Perspective.

Earlier, Sanjay Puri, Founder, Alliance for US India Business (AUSIB), had mentioned in a brief overview that he looked forward to great sessions and a great conclave. He also mentioned that the event enthusiasm can be owed to the students who are looking for solutions with regard to pursuing new opportunities. 

The last day of the conference on December 7, 2011, will see sessions that will revolve around on collaborative opportunities, emerging trends in medical education, and the role of technology integration in education.