State to launch ‘MAHASWAYAM’ portal for online higher education courses

The state government of Maharashtra is set to launch 'MAHASWAYAM', a portal dedicated to higher education courses, similar to the central government's SWAYAM portal. The aim is to provide a comprehensive platform for online courses and adapt to the changing landscape of education. The portal will be designed in collaboration with state universities and will focus on courses related to Indian Knowledge Systems. The government also plans to leverage social media for information dissemination and ensure regular updates through a Twitter handle for the Higher and Technical Education Department.

Mumbai: The state government is set to launch ‘MAHASWAYAM,’ portal dedicated to higher education courses. Mirroring the central government’s SWAYAM portal, ‘MAHASWAYAM’ seeks to provide a comprehensive platform for online courses, adapting to the changing landscape of education.

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Minister of higher and technical education, Chandrakant Patil, held a meeting on Friday to discuss the effective implementation of the new National Education Policy (NEP) in the state. Professor Shailendra Deolankar, director of higher education, highlighted that state universities are already involved in offering online courses. To ensure accessibility for all students, the decision to launch ‘MAHASWAYAM’ as a state-centric portal was finalised.

Under the NEP, students are now allowed to pursue online courses for minor subjects, earning credits towards their final scores. Addressing concerns about academic calendars and fees on the existing SWAYAM portal, Deolankar emphasised that ‘MAHASWAYAM’ aims to provide a solution for both students and administrators.

“To implement this initiative, the state government has formed a consortium comprising Yashvantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Savitribai Phule Pune University, University of Mumbai, and Shivaji University, Kolhapur. Over the next three months, the consortium will collaboratively design the portal, focusing on courses related to Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS),” said Deolankar.

Minister Patil emphasised leveraging social media to disseminate information, urging the department to update the web portal comprehensively in multiple languages. Additionally, he directed the creation of a Twitter handle for the Higher and Technical Education Department to ensure regular updates.