PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said he wished girls were also there among the medallists and awardees at IIT Delhi’s convocation, emphasising the need for greater female participation in academic excellence. “Because you are not merely receiving a degree; you are leaving here with dreams of doing a lot for the country,” Modi said while addressing the graduating students at the 57th Convocation Ceremony of IIT Delhi. Congratulating the students to whom he gave medals and awards for their achievements, he said, “It would have been even better if there had been one or two daughters. Sorry. Why just one or two? There should have been a lot more of them.” Recognising outstanding academic excellence, the Prime Minister presented the institute’s most prestigious honours, including the President’s Gold Medal, Director’s Gold Medal, Shankar Dayal Sharma Gold Medal, and Perfect Ten Gold Medals to meritorious students.

 

The university conferred degrees on over 3,000 graduating students, including 587 PhD scholars, during the ceremony. Warning the graduates against the toxic distractions of the social media era, the Prime Minister urged them to avoid comparing their salaries, placements, or startup milestones with their peers. He counselled them to prioritise their mental and physical well-being while focusing strictly on self-improvement. “Remember, life is absolutely not a leader-board; your real race is not with anyone else, it is with yourself,” Modi said. Encouraging the students to deeply cherish their current moments, he humorously referenced campus memories, including inter-hostel rivalries across Kumaon, Ara, Kara, Vindhy, Nilgiri, Kailash, and Himadri, alongside local culinary favourites like Jia Sarai’s Poha and Satpura mess Parathas. “In the coming times when you will have massive responsibilities, the memories of this place will definitely energise you,” Modi said. Expressing deep gratitude towards the institutional support system, he urged the graduating class to recognise their peers, professors, mentors, and support staff as lifelong assets who effectively became their surrogate families.

 

“You will profoundly remember and be thankful for all these individuals in every future success of yours,” Modi said. The Prime Minister also inaugurated Param Pragya, an AI-powered high-performance supercomputing facility established at the IIT Delhi’s Sonipat Campus. The state-of-the-art facility is expected to significantly enhance the institute’s capabilities in AI, data science, advanced computing and interdisciplinary research. Youth will shape India’s journey towards ‘Viksit Bharat’ and those who keep learning will succeed, says PM Modi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the lives and choices of the youth will play a crucial role in shaping India’s journey towards becoming a ‘Viksit Bharat’, stressing that every decision they make will have an impact on the country and its future. He also added that those who keep learning will succeed. Addressing the Convocation Ceremony of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, PM Modi highlighted the rapid changes taking place across the world and said that the evolving global strategic landscape and fast-paced technological developments would create both challenges and new opportunities for the younger generation.

 

A total of 3,000-plus students, including 587 PhD scholars, were conferred their degrees during the ceremony. “The world’s strategic equations are changing quickly, and the global balance of power is shifting every moment. The biggest force behind this transformation is the rapid pace of technology. Today, no one can say with certainty what the world will look like over the next 20–30 years. But whenever a period of change comes, it brings challenges as well as new opportunities. The world will change, technology will advance, industries will grow, and professions will evolve. But remember one thing: Those who keep learning will succeed,” the PM said. He emphasised that continuous learning would remain essential in a rapidly changing world, where technological advancement is expected to reshape industries, professions and the nature of work in the coming decades. “You are all aware that every generation faces the specific challenges of its time and also bears its own national responsibility. Whatever you do over the next 30 to 35 years of your lives will influence our journey towards a ‘Viksit Bharat’. Hence, every decision you make should also be focussed on how it will benefit the country.

 

Which of the nation’s needs will this fulfil?” PM Modi added. The Prime Minister also highlighted the growing opportunities in the field of research and innovation, describing it as another major avenue available to the young graduates as they begin the next phase of their professional and academic journeys. He pointed out several initiatives introduced by the government to encourage young researchers and strengthen the country’s research ecosystem. “The Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship is providing our talented youth with opportunities to conduct research. A ‘Research, Development, and Innovation Scheme’ has been launched to enable the advancement of new ideas. The National Research Foundation has also been established to give fresh impetus to science and research in the country. Funding of up to Rs 1 lakh crore is being arranged for the research sector,” he said. “Through the ‘One Nation, One Subscription’ initiative, prestigious global research journals are now reaching even the smallest towns in the country at no additional cost,” the Prime Minister added.

 

He further underlined the importance of ensuring that India’s young talent has access to knowledge, research resources and opportunities that can help the country compete and contribute at the global level. The Prime Minister also presented IIT Delhi’s prestigious academic honours to meritorious students in recognition of their outstanding performance. The awards include the President’s Gold Medal, Director’s Gold Medal, Shankar Dayal Sharma Gold Medal and Perfect Ten Gold Medal. Additionally, the Prime Minister virtually inaugurated ‘Param Pragya’ -- an AI-powered high-performance supercomputing facility at the institute’s Sonipat campus. The facility is expected to strengthen the institute’s capabilities in Artificial Intelligence, data science, advanced computing and interdisciplinary research.