Archive · 10 Aug 2026
Arunachal CM urges Northeast universities to become problem-solving institutions
The leader of a place in India called Arunachal Pradesh talked to university leaders from the Northeast.
He wants universities to help solve real problems instead of just giving degrees.
He thinks students should learn to become inventors and entrepreneurs too.
He wants universities to work with farmers, businesses, and the military.
He also wants them to use computers and smart technology to help students learn.
This technology could help teach lessons in many different languages.
He hopes universities will share their books, labs, and teachers with each other.
He wants them to study old traditions and use them in new ways.
The leaders are meeting for two days to plan all of this.
He believes their ideas should turn into real action, not just talk.
Pema Khandu addressed the inaugural session of the two-day Roundtable of Vice-Chancellors of Northeast Universities at the Rashtriya Raksha University campus in Pasighat.
He urged universities to move beyond degree-oriented education and evolve into 'problem-solving institutions' tackling the region's developmental, social, environmental and strategic challenges.
Khandu proposed AI-enabled academic ecosystems covering personalised learning, student assessment, research assistance, language technologies and administrative efficiency.
He suggested creating a Northeast Higher Education Consortium for joint research, faculty exchange, student mobility, shared laboratories and common digital resources.
He called for university-based startup ecosystems, the annual institutionalisation of the Vice-Chancellors' Roundtable, and Centres of Excellence for Indigenous Knowledge and Tribal Studies.
- Who
- Pema Khandu, Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, addressing Vice-Chancellors, academicians, experts, and representatives of AIU and RRU
- What
- Inaugural session of the Roundtable of Vice-Chancellors of Northeast Universities, urging transformation of higher education into problem-solving institutions
- When
- Monday, at a two-day roundtable
- Where
- Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU) campus in Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh
- Why
- To address the region's developmental, social, environmental and strategic challenges and make higher education practical and future-ready
- Speaker
- Pema Khandu, Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh
- Event
- Roundtable of Vice-Chancellors of Northeast Universities (first-ever in the region)
- Theme
- Transforming Higher Education: Innovations, Collaborations and Strategies for a Future-Ready India
- Venue
- Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU) campus, Pasighat
- Duration
- Two days
- Participants
- Vice-Chancellors, academicians, experts, Association of Indian Universities (AIU) and RRU representatives
- Key Proposal
- Northeast Higher Education Consortium and Centres of Excellence for Indigenous Knowledge and Tribal Studies
- Policy Context
- India's Act East policy for international partnerships with South and Southeast Asia