Sibal 'a dynamic, creative thinker': US

Applauding educational reforms being undertaken in India right now, the US has described HRD Minister Kapil Sibal as "a dynamic and creative thinker."

Applauding educational reforms being undertaken in India right now, the US has described HRD Minister Kapil Sibal as "a dynamic and creative thinker."

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"Prime Minister (Manmohan) Singh appointed a dynamic and creative thinker to head the Ministry of Human Resource Development, basically their education ministry, Kapil Sibal," Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Robert Blake, said.

Sibal has promised that the government will introduce in Parliament a new bill that will allow greater foreign participation in education in India, particularly in higher education, Blake noted during a speech at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

"Minister Sibal has talked about how there are 220 million Indians who are now in secondary schools, but only 10 million of them have the opportunity to go to college. Many of those, more than 100,000 in fact, more than any other country, attend college in Washington in the United States," he said.

"I think this new law should open up tremendous possibilities for American universities of all kinds. Not just traditional research and liberal arts universities, but community colleges, vocational training and distance learning programmes, and many other educational opportunities," Blake said.