KUWAIT: The two-day India Education Exhibition 2010, the largest and most specialist exhibition on Indian higher education, and the India Property Exhibition 2010 , showcasing prime properties across India, opened concurrently yesterday at the Ramada Hotel in Riggae.

Inaugurating the exhibitions the Indian Ambassador Ajai Malhotra, highlighted the growing importance of India as a global education hub. "India offers a quality education at a fraction of the cost elsewhere and the alumni of many Indian institutions are recognized globally for their high caliber," said Ambassador Malhotra.

At this exhibition, Indian and foreign students can explore a wide range of higher education options in India and obtain at a single venue updated information on fees, eligibility criteria, and undergraduate and postgraduate courses at a number of Indian institutions of higher learning." The ambassador urged students planning on pursuing higher education in the near future, to visit and avail the educational information available at the exhibition.

Ashok Kalra, the chairman of the Indian Community School, Kuwait also expressed his pleasure at the exhibition, urging students to take advantage of this opportunity. With nearly 40 exhibitors, 150 institutions and over 300 courses on offer, the India Education Exhibition 2010 is a must-attend event for students wanting to find out about further and higher education in India.

While at first glance the exhibition might appear to be just a platform to promote and publicize Indian institutions of higher learning and their services in Kuwait, in reality the exhibition plays a far larger role, providing Indian and foreign students seeking higher education with a unique opportunity to directly interact with administrators and faculty members of institutions on a one-on-one basis, without having to travel to the particular institute in India. This one-to-one interaction offers student
s and parents an opportunity to learn all the details about specific institutions from those who know them best.

As well as allowing prospective students to get all the right information on the courses they're interested in, which universities will best serve their academic needs and how to apply and register, the exhibition also allows them to obtain answers to questions that are often left unanswered in an institution's prospectus or on its website. Questions like, what is the physical setting of the institute - the classrooms, its facilities and equipment, the boarding and lodging amenities? What are the social, c
ultural and religious norms prevailing in the institute? What are the do's and don'ts that new students need to follow? Are freshers subject to introductory ragging and other unpleasant experiences? Professionals from the institutes participating in the exhibition, are available to answer these queries and far more from everyone planning to pursue higher education in India.

With more than 17,000 colleges, 400 universities, 13 institutes of national importance and various other vocational institutes, India's higher education system is one of the largest in the world and warrants a more in-depth look. According to a report published by the Department of Higher Education, a wing of the Indian Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD), enrollment of foreign students in Indian Universities has shown a steady upward trend since 2004, with students from Asian countries constituti
ng nearly 70 percent of the undergraduate intake.

The report noted that the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), one of the largest universities in the world serving over 2 million students in India and 35 countries abroad, ranked first in terms of foreign student enrollment. Most of the foreign students in India enroll in computer-science or English-language programs, two major Indian strengths that prompt many academics to believe that India could eventually become a global education center.

What makes higher education in India alluring to foreign students? The answer lies in the high-quality, world-class international education offered by Indian institutes at very competitive prices. The quality of education provided, along with the caliber of the teaching and support staff and the fact that degrees and certification from reputed Indian universities are a veritable green-card to lucrative employment opportunities in India and abroad, also add to the appeal of Indian institutes. As well as spe
eding up efforts to establish more institutes that can offer quality education in India, the University Grants Commission, another department under the HRD ministry, recently ordered all public universities to establish international student centers, which in addition to helping foreign students with their English language proficiency, help them set up and settle down in the country.

Students in Kuwait would be well-advised to plan their higher education programs in advance and seek the advice of academic counselors ahead of the start of their final board exams. The high-impact, well-planned and implemented India Education Exhibition 2010, is an real opportunity that should not be missed by students seeking further education in India. With nearly 85 Indian Schools in the UAE and Kuwait and over 45,000 higher secondary level pupils following an Indian syllabus affiliated to the Central
Board of Secondary Education or to the Boards of Indian States, competition for admission to prestigious institutes of higher learning is, to say the least, highly competitive.

This fierce competition is further increased by the fact that over 70 percent of school leavers in the region apply for the NRI quota in Indian Institutions. Added to this is the fact that due to the recent economic slow-down, many NRI parents in Middle-East are sending their children back to India for higher school education; over 5,000 NRI students from the region migrated back to schools in India following the 2008-2009 school year. All the above make it clear that foreign students should acquire whatev
er edge is available to better their prospects in getting admission to the institute of their choice. Getting insider knowledge and learning the ropes about registration and admission to institutes, from people who know all about it, at exhibitions like the India Education Exhibition 2010, might provide just the fillip a student needs to turn the situation in their favor.

India Property Exhibition 2010
The India Property Exhibition 2010, which opened concurrently with the education exhibition, witnessed an enthusiastic gathering of people looking to buy or invest in the Indian property market. Speaking about the property exhibition at the inauguration, Ambassador Malhotra said, "Developers have displayed a variety of properties at this exhibition and it provides a good opportunity for Indians in Kuwait to weigh the pros and cons of buying a home in different locations in our vast and beautiful country. I
t is nice to see the wide variety of good choices that developers have at this show and I hope the residents in Kuwait find the home of their choice at this exhibition." The ambassador wished both exhibitions all the best.

Indians from across the country will find the two-day event, which showcases prime properties from all over India, an ideal opportunity to examine and evaluate properties of their choice. With more than 150 projects on display, including apartments, villas, beach and hill resorts as well as prime plots, the exhibition offers something for every lifestyle. The real estate scene in India is on the cusp of a major upward surge and now is an opportune moment to buy a home or invest in the Indian property marke
t. A clear indication of this buoyancy in Indian real estate was displayed during the recent Property Expo held in Navi Mumbai, where, within a span of 3 days, more than 5,000 flats were sold for a total value exceeding Rs 1,000 crore.

Throughout much of 2009, the sluggish global economy hampered real-estate growth in many world markets. Marred by a liquidity crunch, slackening demand, large numbers of unsold properties and falling rentals for over a year, property markets around the world are only slowly limping back to normal. However, in India, the real estate industry weathered the economic downturn relatively better and, in fact, the third quarter of 2009 witnessed a strong rebound. The resilience of real-estate in India can be attr
ibuted to a number of factors, including the exponential growth of a middle-income group, a huge pent up demand for affordable houses in urban, suburban and rural parts of the country and an annual influx of tens of millions of young professionals into the job market, many of them looking to own or rent their first homes.

A recent study of residential markets across India and across a variety of parameters including affordability, investment yield, absorption momentum, supply overhang, commercial developments, demographics and migration trends, has identified the potential of residential real-estate, with a potential demand for 24 million affordable dwelling units, to further promote the real-estate sector. However, according to industry analysts, this optimism in the property sector is reliant on the continued stability of
other relevant economic factors, like mortgage rates, GDP growth, and labor and market stability as well as on prudent decisions by developers to provide quality and value in their real-estate offerings.

The last three months of 2009 have demonstrated that buyers' aspirations mean that they're returning to the residential market again to check out good deals. Apart from the resurgence in positive sentiments, this renewed demand can also be attributed to the fact that housing finance institutions have brought down home loan interest rates to 8-8.5 per cent on fixed interest loans for three years, which stands in marked contrast to the 10-11 per cent that prevailed just six months ago. The India Property Exh
ibition 2010 provides the right venue for Indians in Kuwait to meet directly with reputable developers, financiers and estate agents to discuss the various aspects of buying or investing in the Indian real estate market. The India Education Exhibition 2010, and the India Property Exhibition 2010, are organized by Indus Fairs & Events (India) Pvt. Ltd., in association with Response Events and Exhibitions, Kuwait. - Kuwait Times