G20 MEET IN AMRITSAR begins, discussion on equity, growth

The G20 meeting on education began on Wednesday amid tight security, with seminars on different issues being held at Khalsa College. The event brought together delegates from the G20 Education Working Group to discuss the future of work and innovation, with a focus on building bridges across nations for equitable development. Several G20 events are scheduled to be held in Amritsar. The main event on education is being held from 15-17 March. Besides, the L20 meeting on labor is scheduled for 19-20 March.
K. Sanjay Murthy, Secretary, Higher Education, Government of India, also attended the event.
Govind Rangarajan, Director, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, shared his thoughts on the interdependency of domains and interdisciplinary action for solving problems. He highlighted India’s frugal innovations, which have the potential to solve problems in the developed world.
B. S. Murty, Director, IIT Hyderabad, stressed the need for synergy between government, academia, and industry to find solutions to pressing global problems.
The seminar reached a consensus that research collaboration is the need of the hour and countries and institutions need to break silos to promote translational research for achieving sustainable development goals, just as they did during the Covid-19 pandemic. There’s also a need to establish frameworks for sharing research data and outputs. The G20 countries should work towards establishing a common framework for effective use of emerging and disruptive technologies to address global challenges, it said.
Meanwhile, Union Secretary for Higher Education K Sanjay Murthy, Govindan Rangarajan, Director Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, and IIT Ropar Director were among those present at a panel discussion at Khalsa College. One of the panelists, Alison Dell, Assistant Secretary, Australian Government Department of Education, discussed the national collaborative infrastructure scheme in her country and what her government has been doing to move towards applied research. She emphasized the importance of international collaboration in research and innovation, highlighting the successful partnerships between Australian and Indian institutions in the past.
The seminar and panel discussion were followed by cultural performances, which were much appreciated by the G-20 delegates. A multimedia exhibition has also been organized on the sidelines, featuring participation from industry, academia, and start-up initiatives.