Engineering is not just a degree, but a way of thinking: Former AICTE chairman

Dignitaries at the Induction Programme 2026-27 for first-year BE students of Vidyavardhaka College of Engineering in Mysuru on Sunday (August 30). | Photo Credit: M.A. SRIRAM T.G. Sitharam, former chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) on Sunday (August 30) said engineering education should go beyond earning a degree and equip students with strong fundamentals, problem-solving abilities, human values and a spirit of innovation.He was addressing the Induction Programme 2026-27 for first-year BE students of Vidyavardhaka College of Engineering (VVCE) in Mysuru.Mr. Sitharam urged students to develop a strong foundation in mathematics, physics and other basic sciences and move beyond rote learning to gain conceptual clarity. Engineering, he said, is “not a degree, but a wa