Association Of Indian Universities

On International Women’s Day 2025, we celebrate the remarkable journey of Dr. (Mrs.) Pankaj Mittal, an eminent educationist shaping India's higher education landscape. Currently serving as the Secretary General of the Association Of Indian Universities (AIU)—only the second woman in 97 years to hold this position—Dr. Mittal has been a driving force in academia for over three decades. Before AIU, she held key leadership roles at the University Grants Commission (UGC), influencing national policies in higher education. A Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Mittal holds an MSc and PhD in Agricultural Statistics from ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute, New Delhi, where she emerged as a top-ranking student. Her illustrious career includes a groundbreaking tenure as the first regular Vice Chancellor of Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya - BPSMV, North India’s first rural women’s university. Under her leadership, the university evolved from a modest Gurukul into a globally recognized institution, offering holistic education to over 7,000 girls from kindergarten to PhD. Dr. Pankaj Mittal’s trailblazing contributions to institutional development, policy planning, and educational leadership have earned her a constellation of prestigious accolades. She was honored with the President of India Award (2017) for revolutionizing digital initiatives in higher education, followed by the ?????????? ???????? ???????????????????? ???????? ?????????? (????????) in recognition of her impactful community engagement. Her visionary leadership in academia was further celebrated with the ???????????? ???????? ???????????????? ?????????? (????????) for excellence in education. Adding to her distinguished honors, she received the Smt. Sushma Swaraj Stree Shakti Samman, a testament to her commitment to women's empowerment, and was conferred an Honorary D.Litt. by Karnataka State Women University, Bijapur, cementing her legacy as an architect of progressive education. Beyond academia, Dr. Mittal actively contributes to national education policies as a member of NITI Aayog's "???????????? ???? ??????????????????" committee, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), and several strategic boards shaping India’s higher education framework. A global thought leader, she has represented India in over 15 countries, fostering academic collaborations and presenting at prestigious international forums. Her research on higher education and women empowerment is widely published, reinforcing her role as a thought leader in global education. Dr. Pankaj Mittal’s visionary leadership continues to inspire change, breaking barriers and redefining education for future?generations. Follow IIRF - Indian Institutional Ranking Framework for more valuable insights #education! ??? #HappyWomensDay #PankajMittal #Success #Inspiration #IIRFRanking

Meta-skills and critical thinking, robotics, the role of the liberal arts, ethics in AI, people-centric AI, energy for AI (being more relevant than AI itself right now), the roles of industry / academia and (inter)national centres of excellence... even the psychological impact of our tech-enabled future workplace (anxiety among those who don't trust AI; anxiety among those who do, and worry it'll replace them). Just some of the topics we covered during a fascinating and lively UK India Business Council 2nd annual Future of Work Dialogue in New Delhi today. The theme: re-skilling for the intelligent age. We started with the inimitable, hugely knowledgeable Dr Pankaj Mittal, Secretary General of the Association Of Indian Universities, followed by excellent speeches from: - Monika Srivastava, a Partner at Khaitan & Co, (who kindly sponsored the session and are UKIBC's HE Sector Group knowledge partner. Thank you!); - Professor Somak Raychaudhury, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Ashoka University on the role of liberal arts in the future workforce. (UKIBC was delighted to sign an MoU with Ashoka during the session, to strengthen links between Ashoka University and UKIBC's vibrant, 27-strong UK university community); ? - Vinay Swamy, Country Head, Pearson, on enabling industry-relevant content and faculty re-skilling; - Hema Jagota, Director, Clinical Solutions Commercial Strategy, Elsevier on the future of work in the technologies of the future. A special mention to Professor Julie Sanders, Vice-Chancellor and Principal at Royal Holloway, University of London (who we were pleased to host earlier in the week out the UKIBC office in Gurgaon) for your insightful remarks. And thank you to Dr. Ugur GUVEN, Advisory Council Member, UN Center for Space Science and Space Technology Education in Asia and Pacific (CSSTEAP), who taught me more about what is (and what is not) AI in 5 minutes than any book I've read on the subject! Thank you to our sponsor, speakers and participants. Finally, thank to Yashodhara D., Tara Panjwani, Surbhi Mathur, Astha Katyayan for organising the event. Kishore Jayaraman Jas Pandhal