Prez Murmu bats for sustainable development at HPU convocation
SHIMLA : On the second day of her four-day maiden visit to Shimla, President Droupadi Murmu presented degrees and medals to the students at the 26th annual convocation of the Himachal Pradesh University (HPU).
As many as 99 students were awarded PhD degrees, while 111 gold medals were presented in total. Murmu, who presented gold medals to 10 meritorious students, exhorted education institutions to impart the concept of “One Earth, One Family, One Future”.
Speaking on the occasion, the President said since its inception in 1970, HPU has played a very important role in the field of higher education. The alumni of this University have left their mark in various fields including arts, medicine, judiciary, sports, social service, politics and administration.
The President said the state’s climate and rich biodiversity attracts people from across the world, before highlighting climate change’s adverse effects on ecology. It is the need of the hour to move forward together towards the goal of sustainable development while conserving the rich natural heritage, she noted, exhorting institutions like HPU to promote research and innovation keeping in mind the needs of the local community and the ecological challenges.
Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla, who is also a chancellor of the varsity, said it was a matter of pride for all of us that the convocation ceremony was being attended by the President.
The governor congratulated the graduating students and highlighted that the National Assessment and Accreditation Council has once again granted an ‘A’ grade accreditation to the varsity.
Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu greeted the students and said meeting the President was a moment to cherish for them. An alumni of the varsity himself, he went on to recall his student days and highlighted the rich history of the University
Murmu earlier interacted with Indian Administrative Officers trainees, exhorting them to work with integrity and commitment.
The President also attended the interactive programme with Indian Audit and Accounts Service (IA&AS) officers trainees organised by the National Academy of Audit & Accounts, Shimla at Yarrows.
Governor, Shiv Pratap Shukla and Education Minister, Rohit Thakur, who is also the Minister-in-waiting, were also present on the occasion.
Addressing the trainees, the President said that it was a matter of pride for all of them for the opportunity they have got to enforce principles of accountability and transparency, as officers of the comptroller and auditor general and the Indian audit and accounts department.
“It is incumbent upon you to continue to uphold the ideals of the Constitution and work with integrity and commitment towards Nation building,” she said.