Much touted international conference on education postponed

The much-touted international conference on education, which was slated to be held in November at Gandhinagar, has been postponed, with the HRD Ministry maintaining it would remain busy with a mega ICT meet also being organised during the same month.
The two-day conference was slated to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 27 at Gandhi Mandir in Gandhinagar, a venue that has been hosting the Vibrant Gujarat summit.
"The meet has been postponed as the Ministry would be busy with a mega ICT meet on November and much of the attention would be diverted to this," said a Ministry spokesperson.

Education ministers of about 180 countries were reportedly invited to participate in the summit which would have showcased India's achievement in the education sector.
Sources in the HRD Ministry, though, admitted that there are several other factors which led to the postponement which included a delay in sending the invite and making preparations for the large-size gathering.
Another official contended that schedule was clashing with the Winter Session of the Parliament and therefore the schedule was called off. He though asserted that the programme would be held at a later date next year.

A lack of interest is also being cited for calling off the meet.

November is not considered to be the ideal time of the year for holding these meets especially with the academicians in US as the country is immersed in the Thanksgiving Day celebration.
Replying to a question in Parliament during the Budget Session this year, Smriti Irani had said the conference will be an opportunity to showcase to the world India's achievement in addressing issues related to quality, equity and access besides best practices in the field of school and higher education.
It will also seek to understand best policy interventions and outcomes of measures undertaken in other countries, she said.