Convocation of VIT Chennai held; Irani distributes degrees, medals
| Date :19-Nov-2019 |
Business Bureau :
Union Minister for Women & Child Development and Textiles, Smriti Irani was the chief guest at the Annual Convocation of VIT Chennai held recently. On the occasion, the minister handed over degrees to 1,703 graduands, including 64 Ph.D Scholars and 179 rank holders. Dr G Viswanathan, Founder and Chancellor of VIT, presided over the function. Padmaja Chunduru, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Indian Bank, was the guest of honour. Irani said education was not a one-stop arrangement or limited to the students’ institutional journals and that the youth should continue to seek knowledge for the rest of their lives to achieve excellence. She appreciated Dr G Viswanathan for creating a pathway for better education and also for providing better possibilities.
The minister recalled that in 2006, only 331 research papers were published in India and this number increased to 3,301 in 2016. Irani also urged the students to look at opportunities to launch start-ups in their respective institutions. Dr Viswanathan said that if India had to become a $ 5 trillion economy, it could be done only through education. “India should be the destination for higher education for students from various countries,” he said. He also said that VIT would reverse the trend of Indian students travelling to foreign countries for higher education.
At present students from 54 foreign countries were studying at VIT. Chunduru, appealed to the young graduates to become entrepreneurs and contribute to society and also to make their choices wisely. She called upon students to follow ethics, principles and morals in life to succeed. Dr Anand A Samuel, Vice Chancellor, welcomed the gathering. G V Selvam, Vice President, VIT, Dr S Narayanan and Dr V S Kanchana Bhaaskaran, Pro Vice Chancellors, VIT Vellore and VIT Chennai respectively, were also present.