In an effort to provide students, faculty and educational institutions with free access to development software, the All India Council for Technical Education today signed an agreement with two private players to improve learning in the field.

With the signing of the agreement, AICTE, Autodesk and Microsoft have become partner to deliver free access to development software and design software for institutions, students and faculty in the country.

The AICTE hopes to fully operationalise the system in the next two months after it is able to provide 5 million user keys to students enrolled in recognised institutions.

It has already recognised the institutions through an e-governance project.

To a question, Joe Astroth, Chief Education Officer, Autodesk, said the MoU will help the company in the long term as students who learn on the software will use it after becoming professionals.

The joint effort will focus on putting industry's leading design software into the hands of students and faculty across India's 4,738 technical educational institutions, Astroth said.

S S Mantha, Chairman, AICTE, said, "By partnering with Autodesk and Microsoft, the idea is to raise the level of technical learning and education in India. Post-secondary institutions, students and faculty across the entire nation, in both urban and rural areas, will be able to quickly and easily access world-class software. This will take technical learning and development to a higher level."

HRD Minister Kapil Sibal expressed the need to extend development of such software for skill development and vocational education at the secondary and senior secondary level in schools.