Microsoft bags cloud order from AICTE

The governing body for technical education in India, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has adopted cloud computing to improve technical education and prepare Indian students for the workforce. Microsoft’s Live@edu service will be deployed in more than 10,000 technical colleges and institutes throughout India over the next three months.

Live@edu is a hosted communication and collaboration service that offers email, Microsoft Office Web Apps, instant messaging and storage to AICTE’s more than 7 million students and nearly 500,000 faculty members, for a total reach of 7.5 million users — roughly double the size of the Los Angeles population — making AICTE Microsoft’s largest cloud customer ever.

AICTE: Technical education in-the-cloud

“Microsoft’s cloud platform will make for a truly progressive ecosystem and contribute to the country’s technical education by providing a better communication and collaboration platform for institutes and students,” explains Dr S S Mantha, chairman of AICTE.

According to Anthony Salcito, vice president of Worldwide Education, the country is witnessing rapid economic activity and growth. Developing India’s youth and their skills is going to play an important role globally in the country’s inclusive growth. “The union budget also laid emphasis on skill development and so does the proposed 12th Five Year Plan with a National Policy on Skill development. The PPP model (public-private partnership) is most essential in running and managing training institutions that provide every opportunity to address the skill gap most efficiently,” adds Salcito.

Sums up Sanket Akerkar, managing director, Microsoft India: “Microsoft has always seen education as a priority area and believes that technology offers possibilities that can help empower not just teachers and students but collectively India as a nation.”

Better-than-average cloud-related job growth in education: IDC white paper

Cloud computing is being touted as a significant transformation tool the world over.

In a white paper commissioned by Microsoft, IDC estimates that spending on public and private IT cloud services will generate nearly 14 million jobs worldwide by 2015. The paper also reveals that a majority of these jobs will be found in emerging markets because of their immense workforces — 1.2 billion workers in China and India alone.

Cloud Computing: transformation tool?

According to the paper, the education sector, a small vertical but with better-than-average cloud-related job growth, will see IT cloud services as an attractive way to deal with budget constraints. Many are worried about being locked into a single cloud vendor, but in many developed countries, they may find cloud computing is still a good way to face budget cuts. In less financially constrained geographies, IT cloud services will offer standardisation and lower capital costs of expansion.

Dr Elizabeth Sherly

Explains Dr Elizabeth Sherly, Director (In-Charge), Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management-Kerala (IIITM-K): “Kerala’s state education department, for instance, would gain significantly by switching to the cloud platform. There are a number of applications in the education department, handling functions such as common admission counselling and results. These applications register heavy traffic only at certain times, for instance during the time of admission or results. In other periods, the system remains idle.” 


By adopting cloud computing for this sector, the government can create a central pool of shared resources including software and infrastructure. Not to mention, setting off cloud-related job growth.

Collaboration pact between JKLU and US varsity

International colleges and universities have been collaborating with Indian educational institutions since the early 1990s when government regulations did not allow foreign institutes to set up campuses in India or, recognise foreign degrees awarded in India.

Collaborations are inked to help foreign institutes market their programmes in India through a local partner, participate in student and faculty exchanges as well as lend their expertise. Collaborations range from twinning agreements, joint faculty and staff exchange programs to support in curriculum design and pedagogy. Research published by Dr Sudhanshu Bhushan of the Higher Education Unit of the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration elaborates on the existing number of foreign education providers in India and their partners.

JK Lakshmipat University (JKLU), an institute that offers courses in management, engineering and technology has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with St Cloud University of Minnesota, USA.

The institutes will collaborate in the areas of faculty exchange, short term training, student internship, joint research programmes and joint supervision of doctoral students. The MoU also offers a specific five years integrated programme leading to dual degree of BTech and Masters in Technology Management.

JKLU has existing collaboration agreements with Hanyang University, South Korea and University of Wales, UK.

Hari Shankar Singhania, Chairperson, JKLU, said, “The purpose of this MoU is to make explicit the areas of collaboration between JK Lakshmi University and St. Cloud University. With strong international affiliations, JK Lakshmipat University would cater to the needs of specifically tailored management development programmes for the companies on an exclusive basis besides general programmes that it will offer to industry and other stakeholders.”