Team Siliconindia

• Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan met Sara Musallam, ADEK chairperson, discussing expansion of Indian curriculum-based schools in the UAE to serve the diaspora.
• Pradhan visited IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi campus, calling it a symbol of India-UAE knowledge partnership and praising its growth from vision to reality.
• Visit to focus on deeper education cooperation, including student exchanges, Atal Innovation Labs in Indian schools abroad, and inaugurations of Atal Incubation Centre & IIM Ahmedabad Dubai campus.

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan called on Sara Musallam, chairperson of the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), and deliberated on opening more Indian curriculum-based schools in the UAE to address the educational requirements of the Indian diaspora. Pradhan, who is on a two-day trip to the UAE, also paid a visit to Abu Dhabi campus of IIT Delhi.

"Both sides had productive exchanges on each other's educational priorities. Pradhan presented the success of Atal Tinkering Labs in developing curiosity and innovativeness in Indian schools as well as future plans of Indian schools in the UAE for installing Atal Innovation Labs".

"They also had fruitful discussions on the further deepening of cooperation in education, including increasing more Indian curriculum schools in the UAE to cater to the educational needs of the Indian diaspora community and promoting two-way student exchanges from school level, among others", according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Education.

At IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi, Pradhan remembered it is his second time in the institute and expressed he is happy to see it grow from an idea to a campus.

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"He emphasized that with the illustrious heritage of IIT Delhi, the institution was a beacon of knowledge and research and a lighthouse of the India-UAE knowledge partnership. He also indicated that passing through the digital wall illustrating IIT Delhi-Abu Dhabi's journey from vision to reality is a personally rewarding experience for him", the statement added.

Pradhan's UAE visit will focus on the possibilities of cooperation in the education sector, developing academic excellence and innovation and new dimensions of cooperation to provide solutions to the aspirations of the youngsters and students of the two nations.

He will also open the first overseas Atal Incubation Centre and IIM Ahmedabad campus in Dubai. During the visit, Pradhan will meet top UAE leaders, ministers, policymakers, academicians, and officials of Indian and UAE institutions to develop the partnership in education, innovation and knowledge exchange, the statement added.