The World Bank has approved USD 255.5 million loan to help India improve the quality of its technical education and provide more career opportunities to students in government-run institutions.

The loan will support the Multidisciplinary Education and Research Improvement in Technical Education Project, which aims to enhance student skills and employability by focusing on better research, entrepreneurship, and innovation; and improve governance in technical institutions.

Over the next five years, the project will support around 275 government-run technical institutions in selected states across the country, benefitting more than 350,000 students each year.

As part of the project, students will get access to upgraded curricula including emerging technologies in communication and climate resilience. They will also benefit from better internship and placement services, including opportunities to network with professional associations.

The project is aligned with India's National Education Policy 2020, which emphasizes the need for multidisciplinary education and research to foster innovation and creativity.

The project will also help address the challenges of low enrollment and completion rates, gender and social gaps, and poor quality of teaching and learning outcomes in technical education. The World Bank has been supporting India's efforts.