New Delhi, March 4: President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday said "our national goal" is to make India a developed country before the end of the first half of this century. In her concluding remarks at the two-day Visitors Conference held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here, she also said that to achieve this goal, all stakeholders of the educational institutions and students would have to move forward with a global mindset.

She said young students would make a more effective identity for themselves in the 21st century world with the strengthening of internationalisation efforts and collaborations. The President said availability of excellent education in the higher learning institutions would decrease the tendency to study abroad and the country's young talent would be better utilised in nation building. ‘India Set To Become the World’s Third Largest Economy Soon’: President Droupadi Murmu Addresses Joint Sitting of Parliament Ahead of Budget Session 2025 (Watch Videos).

President Droupadi Murmu at Visitor’s Conference 2024-25

"Our national goal is to make India a developed country before the end of the first half of this century," she said. The conference deliberated on the themes - Flexibility in academic courses, Credit Sharing and Credit Transfer with multiple entry and exit options; Internationalisation efforts and collaboration.

Translation Research and Innovation related to converting research or innovation into useful products and services; Effective student selection processes and respecting student choices in context of NEP; and effective assessments and evaluation were other areas which were discussed at the meeting. The outcome of deliberations was presented before the President. Murmu said India is moving towards becoming the third largest economy in the world. President Droupadi Murmu on Cyber Threats: Warns Digital Fraud, Cybercrime and Deepfake As Serious Challenges to National Security.

"Being self-reliant is the hallmark of a truly developed, large and strong economy. Self-reliance based on research and innovation would strengthen our enterprises and economy. Such research and innovation should get every possible support," she said. She highlighted that in developed economies, the academia-industry interface appears strong due to continuous exchange between the industry and higher education institutions, research work remains linked to the needs of the economy and society.

The president urged the heads of institutions of higher learning to make institutional efforts to have continuous discussions with senior people of industrial institutions in mutual interest. She said that this would benefit teachers and students doing research work. She also told them that connecting the laboratories of educational institutions with local, regional, national and global needs should be their priority.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)