An MoU was recently signed between the University of Kashmir and the Army's 15 corps for providing distance education courses to soldiers posted in the valley. Through the MoU, the soldiers will be able to seek admissions to various courses being offered by the Directorate of Distance Education, University of Kashmir. The duration of the course will range from six months certificate courses to one-year diploma courses and two years postgraduate courses.
Retired Wing Commander Dinesh Mathur, says, "It is a welcome move for the soldiers who are serving in the challenging region of Jammu and Kashmir. The officials posted in the valley can utilize their off-duty hours constructively and improve their educational qualifications by availing this opportunity. As per reports, over 100 soldiers have already registered for various courses."
People in the defense services, including the officers' category, often enter the defense services without acquiring any professional qualifications, except engineers and doctors. So, most of them are in need of an additional educational degree for alternative career options, which may follow after they leave the defense services, he says. Unlike jobs in the other government services, officials from the defense services retire at an early age. Hence, to secure a job they need to hone their skills and educate themselves with an added qualification. Also, in defense services, personnel are mostly not posted in the metropolitan cities, where they can join a regular course. Therefore, they can avail the opportunity to upgrade their qualifications only via distance education. Hence launching courses for the soldiers, especially in the J&K region, is a welcome move, he adds. Retired Col SN Bhardwaj says, "Distance education has been there for the last 20-25 years. I have seen a lot of army officials switch to a new profession post their retirement with the help of the degree earned via distance education. "Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) offers Army Education Project (IAEP), distance education for Army officials. Such courses inculcate the basic technical and managerial knowledge that is required to work in other professions," Bhardwaj adds.
From - The Times of India
Published on - 22 November 2021
