In it's fourth edition, 40under40, presented by BW Education in association with BW Businessworld, brought forth the sharpest minds and their contribution in the education sector. It acknowledged people from a range of industries and backgrounds who are influencing education. The day-long BW Education EduNext Summit and 40under40 Awards took place on Wednesday, 19 February 2025, at The Park Hotel, New Delhi.
These awardees were finalised after a rigorous screening process. The jury to decide the elite 40under40 winners' club were: Dr Annurag Batra, Chairman & Editor-In-Chief, BW Businessworld & Founder, Exchange4media; Lina Ashar, Founder, Dreamtime Learning; Prof Punam Sahgal, Former Dean And Professor, Indian Institute of Management Lucknow; Rupa Chakravarty, Director – Education, Suncity Schools; Dr Anup Singh Director General Nirma University.
In total, four thought-provoking panel discussions and two insightful keynote addresses happened.
In his keynote address, Sudhakar Rao, Director, ICFAI Group of Educational Institutes, highlighted the growing influence of technology, particularly Artificial Intelligence (AI), on the global educational landscape. While acknowledging the buzz surrounding AI, he raised his concern that the full potential of AI is not being fully harnessed in the Indian education ecosystem.
In the first panel discussion, Meha Mathur, Contributing Editor, BW Education; Dr Alka Maurya, Director, SIIB; Dr Nikhil Agarwal, MD, Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer, IIT Delhi; Dr Harivansh Chaturvedi, DG, IILM Institution for Higher Education; Atul Bharat, Group Director, Acropolis Group of Institutions and Dr Prapti Paul, Dean (Academics), ICFAI Business School Gurgaon participated and concluded that a comprehensive and strategic approach is needed. This includes technological innovation, cultural sensitivity, faculty development and policy reform. The goal is to build a robust and globally competitive education system that both retains domestic talent and attracts international students.
In the second panel discussion, Resham Suhail, Editorial Lead BW Disrupt; Sudhir Kukreja, Co-Founder and CEO, Kidzonia Credence International Schools; Rajesh Surana, Founder Director, Magnus Global School Burdwan; Dhirendra Singh, Principal, Birla School Pilani; Siddharth Rajgarhia, Chief Learner and Director, DPS Nashik, Varanasi, Lava Nagpur and Hinjawadi Pune, discussed some very hot topics from the sector.
In the third panel discussion, Dr Pankaj Choudhary, Principal, BMS College of Commerce and Management; Dr Netra Neelam, Director, SCMHRD; Dr Rekha Arcot, Dean, DY Patil Medical College, Hospital and Research Centre, Pimpri Pune; Dr Omkar Singh, VC, Veer Madho Singh Bhandari Uttarakhand Technical University, Dehradun; Dr Maroof Ahmad Mir, Dean, Asian School of Business and Meha Mathur, Contributing Editor, BW Education, engaged and underlined that with the industry evolving at a rapid pace, the students are also expected to be at their level best since day one at the job.
In the fourth and last panel discussion, Manisha Sharma, Principal, Venkateshar International School, Dwarka, New Delhi; Dr Ameeta Mohan, Principal, Amity International School Pushp Vihar New Delhi; Dr Vijay Datta, Principal, Modern School Barakhamba Road (as moderator); Dr Kevin Brady, Principal, GD Goenka Public School Vasant Kunj New Delhi and Dr Anish K Joy, Director, Poornoday Vidyanikethanan, attracted the audience with a very informative session.
While delivering his keynote address, Prof Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, NAAC, emphasised the importance of personalised learning and the need for a more inclusive and accessible system. He stated, "When the world is witnessing a paradigm shift on the education front through access to technology to the increasing impact of AI, upgradation in traditional teaching and learning practices has come under scrutiny." He stressed on the need for a more inclusive, personalised and technology-integrated system to go beyond the skies. He said that the sky is no longer the limit as humans have already reached beyond and so should our education system.
