VISAKHAPATNAM: Indians should invest more in basic educational research for the better development of the country, former President Pranab Mukherjee said delivering the 39th GITAM Endowment Lecture here on Saturday.
Marking the 39th Foundation Day of GITAM Deemed-to-be-University, the institution awarded former President and Bharat Ratna Pranab Mukherjee. The award comprises of `10 lakh, a memento and a scroll of honour. Addressing the gathering, GITAM president Sri Bharat said that with changing times, education is
stepping into new phases and educational institutions should adapt to this. “Though many predict that online education is taking over the field of education, I believe that campus education is encouraging students with diverse ideas of innovation. I aspire to see GITAM in the list of world’s top 100 institutions in the coming 20 years and contribute to great transformations in education,” he said. Bharat recalled the contribution of his grandfather MVVS Murthi, the founder-president of the GITAM, to the institution.
Delivering the lecture, Pranab Mukherjee said, “Industry and University partnership should be built to address such problems so that no one will remain unemployed and every student will be able to pursue their dream,” Mukherjee said.
On being told that GITAM students have developed bio-pesticide, designed a shoe with an electronic circuit for the visually impaired people, he congratulated them and said that a nation’s technological innovation is directly proportional to its spend on research and development.
“Only 0.8 per cent of Indian GDP is being spent on research and innovation while countries like Japan are spending close to 5 per cent of their GDP. “Students should be encouraged to do basic scientific research and enough financial and infrastructural facilities should be provided to them,” he said.