By Education And Careers Desk,News18,Sukanya Nandy

Copyright news18

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan met Sara Musallam, chairperson of the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge, on Wednesday to discuss the opening of more Indian curriculum-based schools in the UAE to cater to the educational needs of the Indian diaspora.
Pradhan, on a two-day visit to the UAE, also visited the Abu Dhabi campus of IIT Delhi.
He inaugurated the Atal Incubation Centre (AIC) at the IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi campus, the first-ever AIC hosted by an Indian institution overseas.
“Both sides engaged in fruitful exchanges on mutual educational priorities. Pradhan shared the success of Atal Tinkering Labs in fostering curiosity and creativity in schools across India as well as plans of Indian schools in the UAE for implementing Atal Innovation Labs. They also had productive conversations on further expanding cooperation in education, including opening more Indian curriculum-based schools in the UAE to meet the educational needs of the Indian diaspora and facilitating two-way student exchanges right from the school level, among others,” the Ministry of Education stated.
At IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi, Pradhan noted that it was his second visit to the institute and expressed his satisfaction at seeing it evolve from a concept to a full-fledged campus. He highlighted that with IIT Delhi’s prestigious legacy, the institution serves as a beacon of knowledge and research and a lighthouse of the India-UAE knowledge partnership. He also shared that viewing the digital wall showcasing IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi’s journey from vision to reality was a personally satisfying moment for him.
Pradhan said that the AIC at IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi will nurture joint start-ups and research-led ventures by both Indian and UAE innovators and promote bilateral collaboration in deep tech, AI, clean energy, healthcare, and other sectors of mutual importance.
The AIC, offering world-class incubation facilities, will also act as a gateway to Middle East markets for Indian start-ups and innovators, he added.
Pradhan launched B.Tech and Ph.D. programmes in Chemical Engineering and Energy and Sustainability at IIT Delhi Abu Dhabi. He expressed confidence that the students at IIT Delhi Abu Dhabi will leave their mark and create new milestones for global prosperity and well-being. The minister appreciated the colourful and creative ‘rangoli’ made by the students at the campus.
Pradhan’s UAE visit aims to explore collaborations in education, foster academic excellence and innovation, and develop new partnerships to meet the aspirations of students and youths from both countries.
He will also inaugurate IIM Ahmedabad’s Dubai campus on Thursday.