Fareeha Iftikhar is a principal correspondent with the national political bureau of the Hindustan Times. She tracks the education ministry, and covers the beat at the national level for the newspaper. She also writes on issues related to gender, human rights and different policy matters.
Articles by Fareeha Iftikhar
After 3 years, AICTE lifts moratorium on new engineering colleges
The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) on Thursday lifted the moratorium on setting up of new engineering colleges, three years after the prohibition came into force in view of low enrolment in engineering and diploma programmes
Published on Mar 24, 2023 12:54 AM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
142 varsities to join CUET-PG 2023
The exam has witnessed significant increase in the participation this year even as it continued to remain optional for central universities.
Published on Mar 22, 2023 12:42 AM IST
Dharmendra Pradhan reviews measures for mental wellness of students in educational institutions
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday chaired a high-level meeting to review the steps being taken by educational institutions to ensure mental health wellness of students and zero tolerance towards discrimination
Published on Mar 21, 2023 12:52 AM IST
UGC proposes norms to connect artists to higher education
This would be in line with the National Education Policy 2020 that wants to bridge the gap between higher education and the arts (kala) by creating a strong bond between them, the commission said in the draft rules made public on Friday for feedback.
Published on Mar 19, 2023 02:59 PM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
7 non-BJP states yet to ink MoUs under PM-SHRI scheme: Officials
The Centre last week reached out to authorities in seven states and UTs, mainly Delhi, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Jharkhand, urging them to adopt the scheme
Updated on Mar 15, 2023 08:27 AM IST
‘Dartmouth College looking at partnerships in India’
The Indian government’s push for global academic collaborations will provide immense opportunities to international higher education institutions and open new avenues of partnerships for them, top officials from the prestigious Dartmouth College has said.
Updated on Mar 10, 2023 11:47 PM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
ICHR plans global collaboration for ‘India-centric’ research
New Delhi: The Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) is looking at global collaborations to conduct “India-centric” research, and has recently signed an agreement with the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) of the UK to work on India’s creative industries and cultural heritage, a top official said
Published on Mar 06, 2023 12:23 AM IST
NTA plans measures to address glitches that marred first CUET
The National Testing Agency is taking measures to smoothen glitches that marred the first edition of the Common University Entrance Test for undergraduate admissions (CUET-UG) last year, a top official said.
Published on Feb 27, 2023 12:26 AM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
CUET expanded to 24 nations with centres likely in Sydney, Washington DC
The NTA has extended the Common University Entrance Test for Undergraduate admissions, or CUET-UG, to 24 countries, with centres in cities that include Washington DC, Sydney, Vienna, Cape Town and Ottawa, among others
Published on Feb 15, 2023 01:04 AM IST
AICTE set to ease norms to boost admissions in core engg courses
The new rules will be reflected in the AICTE’s approval process handbook that is likely to be released by the end of this month.
Published on Feb 11, 2023 11:48 PM IST
20 score 100 percentile in JEE (Main) Session 1
The National Testing Agency (NTA) conducts the JEE (Main) for admissions to engineering courses at centrally funded technical institutes
Published on Feb 07, 2023 01:58 PM IST
Union Budget 2023-24: Promotion of Indian languages receives impetus
Finance minister Niramala Sitharaman in the Union Budget 2023-24 has set aside ₹300.7 crore for the national institutions for the promotion of Indian languages, an increase of 20% from 2022-23
Updated on Feb 03, 2023 12:19 AM IST
Budget 2023: Digital ecosystem for skill development gets impetus
The finance minister announced that 30 Skill India International centres will be set up across different states to train youth for international opportunities
Updated on Feb 03, 2023 02:15 PM IST
Govt goes big on tribal welfare ahead of assembly elections
The tribal population is a key constituency for political parties this year, with assembly elections scheduled to be held in nine states — Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.
Published on Feb 01, 2023 11:11 PM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
Budget 2023: Education gets highest ever allocation to overcome learning losses
The Union Budget 2023 presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday set aside ₹1.12 lakh crore for education – the highest ever and an increase of around 8.2% than what was pegged in 2022-23.
Updated on Feb 03, 2023 02:27 PM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
Union Budget: National digital library to be set up; focus on teacher training
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the national digital library will make available quality books digitally to help children and adolescents overcome learning losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic
Updated on Feb 01, 2023 12:56 PM IST
Enrolment up but women representation remains low in professional, tech courses
Even as women enrolment increased across disciplines in higher education in 2020-21, their representation remained low in professional and technical courses
Updated on Jan 31, 2023 09:09 AM IST
ICHR plans to hold exhibitions on country’s ‘unexplored dynasties’
ICHR will unveil the exhibition, “Glory of medieval India: Manifestation of the explored Indian dynasties” on January 30 at Sahitya Akademi in Delhi.
Updated on Jan 30, 2023 08:27 AM IST
Govt to showcase education sector, NEP in first G20 meeting
According to officials, the G20 education working group will hold a seminar ahead of the meeting at the research park of the Indian Institute of Technology(IIT) in Chennai on January 31 on the topic “tech enabled learning more inclusive, qualitative and collaborative at every level”
Published on Jan 25, 2023 12:46 AM IST
Industry-relevant disciplines to be added to engg colleges: AICTE chairperson
AICTE chairperson TG Sitharam said that there is a need to set up an “institutional system” for regular feedback to bridge the gap between academia and industry
Updated on Jan 23, 2023 07:07 PM IST
Jump in students taking private tuitions after Covid: ASER survey
The proportion of students from classes 1 to 8 opting for paid private tuitions increased by over four percentage points in 2022, in comparison to pre-Covid-19 levels, according to an ASER survey.
Published on Jan 19, 2023 12:21 AM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
ASER 2022 finds sharp drop in children’s reading ability
The report details for the first time how the Covid-19 pandemic affected learning among schoolchildren.
Updated on Jan 19, 2023 04:32 AM IST
Sharp drop in basic reading ability of children amid pandemic: ASER report
The ASER reading test assesses whether a child can read letters, words, a simple paragraph class first level of difficulty, or a “story” class second level of difficulty.
Updated on Jan 18, 2023 02:15 PM IST
NCERT notifies India’s first national assessment regulator
PARAKH has been launched as part of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020 that envisaged a standard-setting body to advise school boards regarding new assessment patterns and latest research, and promote collaborations between them.
Updated on Jan 16, 2023 04:26 AM IST
Education ministry gears up for events linked to G20 presidency
India assumed the G20 presidency in December and will convene the G20 Leaders’ Summit for the first time in the country in 2023. India began its one-year journey with a unique outreach campaign called University Connect, an effort to involve youngsters in the country’s G20 presidency.
Updated on Jan 09, 2023 05:58 AM IST
Fareeha Iftikhar, New Delhi
UGC sets ball rolling for foreign varsities in India
New Delhi: India took a big stride towards allowing foreign universities to operate in the country, with the University Grants Commission (UGC) on Thursday releasing draft regulations that will let them set up campuses in the country
Published on Jan 06, 2023 11:49 AM IST
Foreign varsities setting up campuses in India a win-win situation, says Jagadesh Kumar
Jagadesh Kumar said the commission has framed the regulations in line with the National Education Policy 2020 that envisioned facilitating operations of top universities of the world in India.
Published on Jan 06, 2023 11:39 AM IST
‘Foreign varsities setting up campuses a win-win’: UGC chief
The admission procedure of these universities in India will be the same as they follow in their parent campuses.
Updated on Jan 06, 2023 01:00 PM IST
UGC sets the ball rolling for foreign varsities in India
UGC chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar said the regulations will provide Indian students access to high-quality international education
Updated on Jan 06, 2023 11:43 AM IST
165k schools apply for PM-SHRI upgrade
The maximum number of schools that have applied for the selection are from Uttar Pradesh (37,065), followed by Rajasthan (21,317), Madhya Pradesh (19,508), Maharashtra (16,614), and Andhra Pradesh (13, 455), officials said
Updated on Jan 05, 2023 12:10 AM IST
