The final year engineering students in Tamil Nadu will be taught foreign languages to enhance their opportunities for research and employment abroad, state Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi said on Thursday. German, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, and French will be taught to the final year students of government and aided engineering colleges from this year, he said.

Winding up the debate on the demand for grants for his department in the Assembly, the minister said diploma courses in Tamil medium will be introduced in the next academic year in civil and mechanical engineering streams and the courses will be gradually extended to other subjects.

Women friendly diploma and short-term certificate courses in interior decoration, office management and computer applications, web designing, CAD, bio-medical electronics and ECG will be started as a measure to increase women’s enrolment and also to widen their employment opportunities, he said.

Steps will be taken to permit lateral entry to B. Com (second year) for the students who have completed a diploma in commercial practice and a diploma in commercial and computer practice, the minister announced.

School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi said juvenile writers below 18 years of age will be presented with the Kavimani Award to encourage their talent. Three best writers will be selected for award which carries a purse of Rs 25,000, medal and a certificate, he said.

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