Dharmendra Pradhan, union education minister has inaugurated the modern campus building of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) Regional Centre in Jammu virtually. The campus, located on a two-acre plot in Bantalab on the outskirts of the city, boasts a built-up area of approximately 6,800 square feet. Jai Prakash Verma, the Regional Director of IGNOU Regional Centre, Jammu, highlighted the advanced features of the new building, including high-tech electrical, electronic, CCTV, solar, intercom, electronic private automatic branch exchange (EPABX), and fire alarm systems, according to an official statement.
Currently, the Regional Centre, Jammu operates 31 Learner Support Centres (LSC) across prominent government higher education institutions, the University of Jammu campus and affiliated higher education institutions. These LSCs are also present in district headquarters and correctional facilities such as Central Jail Kot Bhalwal, District Jail Ambphalla, District Jail Udhampur and District Jail Kathua,the statement mentioned.
The Centre also provides support services to learners associated with the IGNOU Army Regional Centre in Northern Command Udhampur. Verma highlighted that the new permanent campus will allow them to expand their offerings to include more professional and skill-based job-oriented programmes. He mentioned that some popular and high-end professional programmes currently lack support services in the region, forcing learners to seek admission in other Regional Centres. With the state-of-the-art facilities of the new campus, Verma aims to cater to learners interested in such programs effectively, it added.
With inputs from PTI.