Address by Governor at the ‘Snatak’ – Graduation Ceremony of Aurora Group of Engineering Colleges at Hyderabad
Address by Shri CH. Vidyasagar Rao, Governor of Maharashtra at the ‘Snatak’ – Graduation Ceremony of Aurora Group of Engineering Colleges at Shilpakala Vedika, Hyderabad at 1030 hrs on Sunday, 31st July 2016
Dr N.V. Ramana Rao, Rector, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad, Shri T Papi Reddy Garu, Chairman, State Council for Technical Education, Telangana, Sri Sridhar Chunduri, Chief Technology Officer, Wells Fargo, Shri G Bhaskar, Director, Telangana Academy for Skill and Knowledge, Government of Telangana, Shri K Mohan Raidu, Director, Informatics India, Principals, dignitaries, Heads of Departments, members of faculty, invitees, staff, graduating students, parents, ladies and gentlemen,
I am very happy to be with you and to share your joy on this memorable day in your life in this beautiful ambience of Shilpakala Vedika.
At the outset, I would like to congratulate each one of the graduating students, who have completed their engineering degree programme from the Aurora Engineering institutions.
I have known this institution and members of management for the last many years. The Aurora Group established in the year 1989 has emerged as a premier engineering education provider not only in Telangana, but also in the entire South because of its thrust on excellence and quality. The infrastructure and the beautiful settings of its campuses make the Aurora institutions a perfect place for learning.
The Aurora’s Engineering Colleges have the potential for excellence and I wish and hope that the Group will create new benchmarks in quality and excellence. Speaking for Telangana, I must say, the Aurora Group has contributed to the progress and development of Telangana in a significant measure and we are justly proud of it.
I congratulate the Aurora Consortium and to all its engineering colleges on this occasion.
Dear Graduating Students,
Graduation marks the completion of an important phase in your life. You all have worked hard, to acquire knowledge, technology and skills through the programmes offered by your institution.
While achieving the degree, you must have experienced pressures, ups and downs and anxious moments. On this significant day in your life, you would be experiencing a certain joy and happiness to see your perseverance, hard work and commitment being translated into achievement of your goals and objectives.
Friends,
This is also a day of fulfillment for the parents of many of you; who invested their hard earned money in educating you. In many cases, your parents may have sacrificed their own personal happiness to make sure that you receive the best of education that leads to a better future for you. This day, therefore, belongs to them in equal measure.
I also compliment the dedicated and committed faculty members of this institution who worked hard, to impart quality education to build the knowledge base, develop skills and inculcate values in their students to take our country forward.
Many of you will now enter the professional field to become part of an active and skilled work force and will also add to the technical prowess of our nation.
Yet some others might pursue higher studies and research elsewhere, including in foreign universities. In either case, the knowledge and the values you imbibed here, will guide you wherever destiny will take you.
The degree that you received today will serve as your Life Jacket that will help you to swim and float across the world safely either in the field of education, enterprise, social service or employment.
Dear friends,
Now that, you have received your degrees, you are going to the actual field of work on your own, without having your mentor or teacher around. At this juncture, you will do well, to remember the last words of advice given by Gautama Buddha to his disciple.
Bhagwan Buddha had said , and I quote ‘Atta Deep Bhava’ – Be Your Own Light’. Your own experience, your own observations and your own intuition will be your guide and guru in your future pursuit.
Dear friends,
On an occasion like this, I am tempted to recall how our ancient sages and scholars viewed the world philosophically and thought of the welfare of the entire universe.
‘Krinavanto Vishwam Aryam’ – Make the Universe Noble.
‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ – Consider the whole world like a family. And finally,
It was because of this broad vision and universal outlook that India was called the ‘Preceptor of the Universe’ or Jagat Guru in ancient times.
One of the greatest American writers Mark Twain had said, and I quote, “India is, the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grandmother of tradition. Our most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured-up in India only.” (unquote). Young India represented by you, will have to strive-hard, to regain and recapture India’s glorious past.
Friends,
You have graduated at a time when India stands on a cusp of change. The Hon’ble Prime Minister of India has made our international diplomacy visible and participatory. All of us have seen the thunderous response and reception the Hon’ble Prime Minister has received in the countries of the world and in the rallies he addressed; be it in the United States, England, Australia, China, Japan or others. It clearly shows that the perception of the world towards India has changed remarkably. India has emerged as the fastest growing economy in the world.
Our engineers, our doctors, our entrepreneurs, our professionals and our researchers, and particularly our skilled workers, have raised the flag of India, be it in the Silicon Valley, or in different countries of the World.
This change of perception of the world towards India is taking place at the most appropriate juncture when India has emerged as the most youthful nation in the world.
It is estimated that by 2020, the average age of an Indian will be 29 years, that is 8 years younger than the average age of a Chinese or an American. The working population in India is itself 65 per cent.
As youths of this country, you are going to be the drivers of our economy and development. Our success in taking advantage of the demographic dividend, depends largely on how we convert our youths into productive human resources through education, skills and values. If we fail in this task, the same demographic advantage will turn into a disaster.
Dear friends,
Education in general, and scientific and technological education in particular, is always seen as an instrument of transformation for economic, social and political development of the country.
It is through the power of science and technology that we can address some of our challenges like food security, nutritional security, energy security, management of water resources, provision of education, ‘health for all’ and others.
Today our youths are brimming with ideas and enterprise. A silent revolution is unfolding in India. And it is driven by youths. Start-ups have emerged as the next big economic force in India.
India, with an estimated 4400 start-ups, many of which have been started by engineering graduates, is emerging as the third largest start-up ecosystem in the world today, next only to the USA and Britain.
What is reassuring, is that, 72% of the founders of these start-ups are young men and women like you, below the age of 35 ! It is estimated that the number of start-ups in India will reach over 12,000 by 2020.
I believe that even if 50 percent of the graduating students from amongst you become enterpreneurs, we can achieve wonders in respect of bringing about socio-economic transformation. Friends, India of the 21st Century wants an army of Job Givers, not job seekers.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In his convocation address at the Science College of Prayag in 1949, Nobel Laureate Sir C V Raman told students, and I quote, “Boys, when we import, we not only pay for our ignorance, but we also pay for our incompetence.”
Elaborating this point, he said, we often pay Rs.50, 000 for importing something we can make ourselves for Rs.5,000. The difference, we pay for our ignorance. I think every single person in the country needs to ponder-over what he had said, nearly 67 years ago.
It brings me to the point I want to make today, namely, giving thrust and emphasis on innovation and research by our own institutions of higher learning, and particularly the institutions of engineering and technology.
I am sure, emphasis on research and innovation will help to make India self-sufficient and self-reliant in all respects. Most importantly, it will enrich and empower the common man.
At present innovation and research is happening only in a few national institutions. I want to see innovation and research becoming an integral part of our higher education system, of universities and colleges. This will happen only when we inculcate scientific temper and the spirit of enquiry among our children and youths.
Friends,
Indian Mathematician Bhaskaracharya is considered as the greatest mathematician of medieval India. It was Bhaskarachyarya who first accurately calculated the time taken for the Earth to orbit the Sun, as 365.2588 days. This was much before the Western scholars calculated the time. Further, Indians gave the world, the concept of zero. We gave the world Yoga, we gave the world Ayurveda.
No wonder, Albert Einstein, one of the greatest scientists of all time, philosopher and mathematician said, “We owe a lot to Indians who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made”. (unquote)
It is through innovation, research and development that we can bring positive transformation in society and address many of its problems including poverty, disease, hunger, malnutrition and unemployment. You, as graduates of this Institution, have the responsibility of ushering in societal transformation using the knowledge of science and technology which you have acquired.
I would like to flag one or two issues for the consideration of the management of the Aurora Colleges.
Today, students are demanding international learning experience. Universities from across the world and the best of private universities are competing with each other to attract our students. Some institutions are even offering scholarships and free-ships.
At this juncture, institutions such as yours, will have to constantly strive for maintaining highest standards of education and research.
The issue of faculty shortage is affecting the quality of education across the country. I do feel that investment in recruiting teachers should not be seen as expenditure. We must not allow teaching positions to remain vacant. We must invite experts from industry, laboratories and foreign universities on short-term basis to give the students a world class learning experience. If required, institutions must forge knowledge-partnerships and collaborations with the best engineering institutions in the world.
Secondly, every institution, which operates in a society, must engage with society and try to be socially relevant.
Even today over 250 million people in our country languish at subsistence level of poverty. It is our collective responsibility to take them out of poverty and make them stakeholders in the progress of the nation. I urge you all to continue the thrust on socially responsive projects through the medium of research and technology. Let research in academic institutions like yours become relevant for those at the bottom of the socio-economic pyramid!
Dear friends,
On this momentous day when you are set out on your journey into the real world, I call upon each one of you to take a pledge to make the full use of technology for the benefit of mankind and to see that the use of technology spreads happiness, prosperity and general well-being of the people of this country.
I congratulate all the Snatakas on this momentous day and wish you all-well in life and future career. I also wish the Aurora Colleges of Engineering Godspeed in their future endeavors.
Jai Hind!!