The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Southern Region hosted the CII SR Education Conclave 2026 in Chennai under the theme "Industry-Aligned Education: Global, Intelligent and Data-Driven." The conclave brought together educators, policymakers, industry leaders, academic institutions, skill development organizations, and EdTech innovators to discuss the future of education and workforce development.

A key highlight of the conclave was the panel discussion on "Higher Education Fuelling the Regional Economy,"moderated by Mr. Srikanth Talluri, Co-Chair, CII Education & Skills, who steered an engaging dialogue on the role of higher education in driving regional economic transformation. Distinguished Panelists Include

• Dr Nagarajan Malmurugan, Vice Chancellor of St Peters Institute of Higher Education and Research

• Mr Vijay Shekhar Pandey, Director of Training Board of Apprenticeship Training (SR)

• Mr Rajesh Kumar, Co-Founder & CEO of Kalvium Labs

Key Takeaways

• #Industry Centric Curriculum Ofcourse,  While NOT ignoring #Student Centricity in #Curriculum#Design & Delivery.

• #Faculty #KPIs & Incentives needs Reframing. 

• Local Problem Solving #Culture - #Local #Industry & #Academia Integration a high priority across every District-level Industrial & Education Clusters

• #Earning while #Learning - #NATS - ‘National Apprentice Training Scheme’ is just the beginning of #Incentivising #Students towards Work-to-Learn indulgence.

The discussion explored how institutions can better align with industry needs while preserving student-centric learning. Panelists emphasized the importance of reimagining curriculum design, strengthening industry-academia partnerships, and creating learning ecosystems that prepare graduates for an AI-driven and rapidly evolving workforce.

The panel also underscored the growing significance of AI-enabled education, future skills, innovation, and sustainable talent development in strengthening India's education ecosystem.

The session reinforced CII's commitment to fostering meaningful dialogue between academia, industry, and policymakers, with a shared vision of building a globally competitive, future-ready education system that contributes directly to regional and national economic growth.