The field of education in the country has witnessed a lot of changes over the years. Private universities or institutions that started small and grew by leaps and bounds have opened up new opportunities for all and especially for the local community to study and excel. In this candid interview, Mr Suresh Jain , Founder Chancellor, Teerthanker Mahaveer University, Moradabad, discusses his educational journey and how he inspires students in Moradabad through quality education.
Teerthanker Mahaveer University clearly pays homage to Lord Mahaveer. So, what was the inspiration behind the name of the university? Was it faith, or was there another factor at play?
My father always wanted to work in the field of education. He started an Inter College in our village near Moradabad in 1966 and eventually moved to Moradabad, where my father decided to invest all of his savings to start a degree college. I proposed that we name the college after him. He declined and suggested that we name it after Lord Mahaveer. Thus, Teerthanker Mahaveer University was born. The University aspires to be regarded as the ultimate destination for world-class education by adhering to Lord Mahaveer's values of Right Philosophy, Right Knowledge, and Right Conduct in all spheres of operation.
Talking about your foray into education, two things have to be addressed. Firstly, you earned money and invested it in public service by starting the college, more like CSR. Secondly, you addressed the educational needs of the local community by offering a place where they can study without having to go long distances. So, are you meeting the educational needs of local students?
Some engineering colleges were already in place when we began. However, there was no concrete work being done in the field of medicine. So, we began with a computing science college in 2001, went on to set up a dental college in 2005 which was followed up by a medical college in 2008. The Government of Uttar Pradesh passed the ‘Teerthanker Mahaveer University Act’ in 2008, which was approved by the University Grants Commission (UGC). Then we progressed rapidly. From the beginning, we have built on the idea that we will only offer courses that can build a student’s future. Regardless of the cost, we do not teach any course at TMU, where a student cannot find work immediately after graduation. As a result, more and more students were drawn to us.
Perhaps this is why you partnered with Bangalore and other cities that offer advanced courses and have introduced numerous courses. How are the students adjusting to their new surroundings?
There are always hiccups when you start something new. We live in a very poor community, where students and their parents lack financial support, while the affluent study in big cities or abroad. The average individual, on the other hand, requires the type of education that will allow him or her to find work and raise a family. For instance, after completing a three-year nursing course, a student can easily obtain a job at names like Medanta or Apollo.
How do you handle the synergy between the courses you teach and the types of students who attend? Is there a method of nurturing that you use?
The students coming from the heartland struggle with English since the villages lack proper schools and there is a shortage of qualified teachers. We welcome students coming from all levels. While English is not required in our classes, we teach English from the first semester of each course to help them understand technical education in English along the way. As a result of this initiative, we also see improvements in a student’s confidence and their interview skills.
How is TMU gearing up to implement the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 in its approach?
Our focus has always been on multidisciplinary education. Pedagogy at TMU has focused on cognitive, affective, and psychomotor skills of a student from the beginning. NEP 2020 furthers our resolve for the purpose of holistic development of the youth. Some key steps being undertaken involve the adoption of Choice Based Credit System (CBCS), adoption of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) and the implementation of Blooms’ Taxonomy in pedagogy. A task force has been constituted for the implementation of NEP 2020 at TMU. We call upon all the aspirants to avail the opportunities provided by TMU in building their career and in serving the society.
For more information visit : https://www.tmu.ac.in/