New Delhi: "The National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has been requested to prepare a draft advisory on project work with respect to the Continuous and comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) scheme so that there is no stress on students and also to develop a methodology for extending the CCE scheme to cover challenged children," stated Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD) Kapil Sibal while inaugurating the Golden Jubilee Year celebrations of the NCERT today.

"On the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) front, the NCERT has been tasked to survey the status of pedagogy and classroom transactional processes as also the availability of and quality of infrastructural facilities in schools," he said.

He also stated that in recognition of its vast repertoire of expertise, NCERT has been designated as the academic authority for the implementation of the Right To Education (RTE).

The Minister pointed out that education, among others, is a means to a livelihood, and earlier the preparatory processes begins, better does the student community get prepared for gainful employment.

He said that he was of the view that our education curriculum should, from the secondary stage itself, begin gradual induction of students into various vocations and professions. Besides such vocational courses, emphasis should also be on development of conflict resolution and problem solving skills, he emphasized.

Wishing the NCERT the best on its Golden Jubilee, the mister stated that he would like NCERT to develop an open and public debate on the nature and purpose of education in the digital age which goes beyond slogans such as 'meeting the ICT needs of every child'.

He said, instead, we need to confront the longstanding assumptions about what education is for, who conducts it, and how it is to be assessed. And this challenge will need to take place in the public domain, in the media, the homes, businesses, among scientists and technologists, religious leaders and all making their case for how education may need to change to meet the social, environmental, spiritual and human needs of the future, he underlined.

Sibal recapitulated that it was Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, who emphasized on creating sustainable institutions for education, scientific, technological and industrial development.

"We salute the vision, foresight and enthusiasm with which the NCERT, a think tank, an institution for carrying out research, development, training and extension activities with regard to school education for a country as large and diverse as ours was created," he said.