Professor Ram Takwale is an Emeritus Professor in the University of Pune and Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nasik; Chief Mentor MKCL Knowledge Foundation, Founder Director Maharashtra Knowledge Corporation Limited (MKCL) and President, Indian Consortium for Educational Transformation (I-CONSENT).

Ram Takwale was born on 11 April 1933 in a Hargude village located in Saswad Taluka, District Pune. His initial school education was in Hargude and Saswad. He did his matriculation from the prestigious Nutan Marathi Vidyalaya Pune. He did his graduation from Fergusson College and Masters from University of Pune. He completed his Ph.D. from Moscow State University He has taught physics and guided research in Pune University for over two decades. He was Vice-chancellor of three Universities: Pune University, Pune (1978-84), founder of Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik (1989-95) and Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi (1995-98). He has been award D.Litt from Tilak Maharashtra University and Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU).

Professor Takwale evolved distinctive state open university, YCMOU, which won an award of excellence from the Commonwealth of Learning. The open education was linked with work places and learner needs, and created new ways of imparting open and distance education. His contributions include development of open and distance education (ODE) system, work-place based training and education, introduction of courses for farmers, industry workers and school dropouts, change in IGNOU from its print dominated to electronic media mode, introduction of extension and research degrees in Open University system.

Prof. Takwale has received national and international awards and honors: three honorary Doctorate degrees (UKOU and two Indian Universities); Meritorious Service award by AAOU, UGC’s Pranawanand Saraswati Award, Chaturang Puraskar for Education, etc.

One of Dr. Takwale’s life-long concerns is to extend education to empower people, particularly in the scenario of diversity, disparity, deprivation and large numbers. He is currently associated with development of programs of school and teacher education in always connected environment created by internet. His current interest is to evolve a model of new education with development centric creation of value and wealth through cooperative and collaborative working and learning. For this purpose, he is trying to develop cyber-real structure of educational organisation and management, called Param University and Param School, along with the Third Model of Development. The object is to radically reconstruct current education system and make it suitable for socio-economic transformation required in the 21st century connected world.

Ram Takwale developed a new model of a state open university responsive to the needs of the state by developing teaching learning models useful for work-place based learning. His contributions include development of open and distance education system, work-place based training and education through distance mode, introduction of courses for farmers, industry workers and school dropouts through open learning, change in IGNOU from its print based mode to electronic media, development of the OPENET programme, introduction of extension education in open university system, M Phil. and Ph D programme in YCMOU and IGNOU and development of National Action Plan for primary teachers’ in-service training.

Professor Ram Takwale was associated with many national and international organizations and bodies. He was President of the Association of Indian Universities (1994), President of Asian Association of Open Universities (1995-98), Founder Member and the President of the Maharashtra Academy of Sciences (1994-95). He is closely associated with the Commonwealth of Learning, Vancouver, Canada, through its programmes and was a member of the COL Review Committee & Regional Advisor (South Asia) to the President of COL.

He was Director Indian Institute of Education (IIE) Pune. He was also associated in various capacities with the Association of Commonwealth Universities, International Council for Distance Education and many committees and bodies at the national and international level. One of Dr. Takwale’s life-long concerns is to extend education to help develop people, particularly in the scenario of diversity, disparity, deprivation and large numbers. His contributions include promotion and development of a concept of mass university, use of open and distance education in technical & vocational education for less-educated or illiterate, development of extension education in Open University system and large-scale training and education of workers, farmers and villagers and development of a system of networked resource based education. Dr. Takwale was also the Chairman of the Committee appointed by the Department of Higher and Technical Education, Government of Maharashtra, for IT use in Higher and Technical Education in Maharashtra. The UK Open University, the first and a pioneering open university in the world, honored him on 30 June 1999 by conferring honorary Doctorate degree on him for his contributions in open and distance education.

Commonwealth of Learning honored Dr. Takwale by conferring Honorary Fellowship of COL on 1 August 2002 in the Durban Conference, South Africa in the International Conference of Commonwealth countries, and he was the only recipient from India. Dr. Takwale was honored by the University of Pune by conferring the honour of ‘Jeevan Gaurav Puraskar’ for 2002, by YCMOU with Dnyandeep Puraskar for his work in Open & Distance Education. He has received many other honors such as Purandhar Gaurav, Vitthal Ramji Shinde Puraskar, Jeevan Gaurav Puraskar by Chaturang Pratisthan Mumbai in 2010. Secretary of the Network for Educational Transformation (NETRA). He is The President of The Indian Consortium for Educational Transformation (I-Consent) is indeed his brain child. Professor Takwale is also heading a high powered committee on Sub-Division and Re-Organization of Universities in Maharashtra.