Hon’ble Vice President of India Shri Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu visited Lovely Professional University (LPU) Punjab, on 22nd October and addressed mammoth 9th convocation ceremony at Baldev Raj Mittal Unipolis auditorium, wherein thousands of students received degrees/diplomas. Hon’ble Vice-President delivered the convocation address and also awarded 54 Ph D degrees, 98 Gold Medals to toppers. An exceptional glimpse of international integrity was seen at the Convocation, where international students from 70+ countries also received degrees along with their Indian classmates from all states of India. On this memorable occasion, parents of degree/diploma recipients also witnessed their wards receiving degrees on the occasion.
Mentioning his happiness on being in Punjab – the Golden State of India– endowed with nature and people of indomitable spirit, Hon’ble Vice President addressed all in Punjabi, with his famous one-liners’ style: “Sat Sri Akal; ajj diyaan mubaarkaan; and, ithe aake mein badaa khush haan. I would like to congratulate LPU, a young university with enthusiasm and innovative spirit, for its commitment to provide quality education to prepare students to face challenges of the global society in 21st century. True education equips youth to contribute to the material progress of the country, as well as to maintain India’s cultural and spiritual heritage.”
Talking about important role of education, Hon’ble Vice President shared: “Education is the main instrument for socio-economic transformation of the nation and lays the foundation for building a knowledge society. Institutions should produce individuals with critical analytical skills and innovative thinking. The time has come for universities to forge organic links with industries and impart skills to the students in accordance with the requirements of the industry.” Mr Naidu emphatically said: “We need to restore India’s ancient glory as a prime destination of quality higher education. India was once known as ‘Vishvaguru’ and ours universities were international centers of excellence. For the country to recapture the past glory, the private sector will have to play a vital role in meeting the demands of higher education.”
Appreciating LPU for its strengths, Mr Naidu shared: “I am pleased to learn that LPU focuses on the overall development of character of its students by laying equal emphasis on sports, cultural activities, self- discipline, values, ethics, developing teamwork and leadership qualities. LPU’s collaborations with the schools on the one end and the industry & global institutions on the other, clearly demonstrate its holistic and futuristic approach in educating the future generations of this country. For this all, I congratulate the Chancellor, faculty members and the staff of LPU for taking forward the cause of providing quality education to the masses and thereby contributing to nation-building.”
Laying stress on the emancipation of women, Mr Naidu said: “Educate women and educate the whole nation: Women need regular encouragement”. He also shared that we should always remember our mother, mother tongue, motherland, native place and Gurus. We should never ignore our mother language.
Along with Hon’ble Vice-President, also present on the main dais of the convocation were Cabinet Minister for Industries & Commerce, Shri Sunder Sham Arora as Guest of Honour; Lovely Group Chairman Mr Ramesh Mittal; LPU Chancellor Mr Ashok Mittal; and, Pro Chancellor Mrs Rashmi Mittal. Among other VVIPs in the auditorium were Vice-chairman Naresh Mittal; Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Ramesh Kanwar; and many top ranked political leaders including Rajya Sabha MP & Punjab BJP Chief Shwait Malik, MLA Som Parkash and bureaucrats.
Prior to this, welcoming Hon’ble Vice President, LPU Chancellor Mr Ashok Mittal expressed his happiness on having an inspirational icon, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu, as Chief Guest of the Convocation. Mr Mittal explained that Mr Naidu is not only a youth icon but also a great propagator of both rural and urban life. Mr Mittal also brought into notice of the Vice President that over 3,000 graduating LPU students belong to his home state. Informing about university’s legacy, Mr Mittal told that a lot of LPU alumni are either accomplished entrepreneurs or working with top MNCs of the world like Apple, Google, Microsoft, Face-book, and Amazon. LPU also recently held alumni meets in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Toronto, Vancouver, London, Sydney and more.
Mr Mittal also informed about prestigious rankings meted out to LPU including government’s NIRF rankings, in management and pharmacy; Swachh Bharat top ranking amongst 6000+ applicants; and, just last week received ICAR accreditation, where out of 700 private agricultural institutions in the country, LPU becomes the first and the only private institution to get ICAR accreditation with a very high score. Wishing all the best to the graduating students on starting a new chapter in your life, he hoped that they would remain close to their alma mater.
In fact, convocations at LPU have always been illustrious as either head of a nation or a leader of national/international importance addresses the convocation, which makes students imbibe pragmatic thoughts just before stepping into new phase of their life. Prior to this, many Presidents and Prime Ministers of different nations including India, Mauritius, Kingdom of Lesotho, Commonwealth of Dominica (North America), Afghanistan, and Nobel Peace Prize recipient His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, have already delivered grand convocation messages to many thousands of LPU students during different convocations.
