Guwahati, Aug 21: The weekly news of ''The Week That Was'' features Assam CM's scheme to revamp High and H.S. schools in Assam to improve the infrastructure of the institutions. It also features PM's flagship programme introduced for cancer control of women and NIELIT's MoU with six colleges in Assam to empower students and trainees. The details of the news are as follows:
Assam CM to revamp High and H.S. schools in Assam
On August 15th, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced a Rs 10,000 crore scheme for improving infrastructure in all government high and higher secondary schools. The chief minister, after the celebrations of the 76th Independence Day, said in his key note speech that the government will roll out both the Assamese and English curriculum in all the 4,000 high and higher secondary schools in the state. He stated that this scheme is required to enable the imparting of modern education in these institutions, infrastructure needs to be developed. He further said that the government would spend an amount of around Rs 4 crore on each educational institution.
PM's flagship cancer control programme for women to cover Kamrup District
The Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India and Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai have collaborated to launch a flagship cancer control programme to screen five lakh women for common cancers across three districts of India, namely, Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Kamrup in Assam, and Sangrur in Punjab. It was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to commemorate 75 years of Independence.
The women's cancer screening project was formally launched for Kamrup district of Assam by the State Health and Family Welfare Minister, Keshab Mahanta, on August 18 at the Dr B Borooah Cancer Institute (BBCI), Guwahati, as the chief guest. This was preceded by the ceremonial inauguration of a cancer screening camp on the BBCI premises.
Speaking on the occasion, the minister stated that more emphasis should be laid on the prevention and early detection of common cancers like cancer of the mouth, breast, and uterine cervix. He appealed to the public to adopt a healthy lifestyle and refrain from the consumption of tobacco and alcohol.
Dr. Amal Chandra Kataki, director of BBCI, said that cancers of the mouth, breast, and uterine cervix are amenable to prevention and early detection. Due to lack of awareness, the vast majority of patients with cancer unfortunately take consultations at fairly advanced stages, resulting in poor outcomes. So far, over 10,000 women have been screened, of whom 522 women were suspected of having potentially malignant lesions.
All the suspected women were called to the BBCI for further investigation, and three of them were confirmed with the diagnosis of cancer. The patients are presently undergoing treatment at the institute, the doctor added.
NIELIT signs MOUs with higher educational institutions in Assam
The National Institute of Electronics & Information Technology (NIELIT) has signed MoUs with higher educational institutions in Assam for academic association among the institutions and to carry out joint activities in the emerging fields like cyber security, IT, blockchain, bioinformatics, cloud computing, etc. The colleges include JN College, Boko, Tihu College, Tihu, Handique Girls' College, Guwahati, RG Baruah College, Guwahati, BHB College, Sarupeta, and Dhamdhama Anchalik College.
In Assam, NIELIT's target is to train around 45,000 people and will offer various awareness and training programmes free of cost for target groups—farmers, women, elderly people, school and college students, graduates, diploma engineers, engineering students, and school teachers. NIELIT will also assist the eligible students in getting the right placement after attending the training programmes. Besides, incubation for start-ups in IT and electronics is also in the purview of this programme.
NIELIT Guwahati has planned to sign MoUs with most of the universities, colleges, and premier institutes across the state. MoUs have already been signed with CIT, Kokrajhar, Bodoland University, and Assam Down Town University to jointly conduct events like workshops, seminars, and training programmes, internship training; summer training; and final year projects with mutually agreed terms to share infrastructure and manpower to facilitate the candidates.