In the words of Douglas H Everett, “There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.” Shiv Nadar, is one of the few people who turn dreams into reality, not just for himself, but for the society at large. His many roles — a tech tycoon, educationist, visionary and philanthropist, have all been equally fulfilling to him. Here’s look at the man himself, his inspiring story and his new venture — Shiv Nadar University (SNU).
On campus
“The Shiv Nadar University is spread across 286 acres of land in Greater Noida. It can accommodate approximately 8,000 students. Carrying forward the legacy of SSN College of Engineering in Chennai, the Shiv Nadar Foundation’s vision is to create a research-led, interdisciplinary, self-sustaining university at par with premier education institutions world-wide,” says Nadar.
The university will begin its programmes with the launch of the School of Engineering this academic year (2011-12) and plans to roll out other departments like the School of Business and School of Education in the coming years. Student intake has been restricted to 300 this year. Admissions will not be based on marks/ranks alone, claims Nadar. Aspirants will have to clear an entrance test and a personal interview in July. Visit: http://snu.edu.in/ for details.
New approach to learning
SNU’s most significant differentiator will be the strong emphasis on research that will allow the different centres to break the disciplinary silos that Indian education has been traditionally boxed in. A student shall be able to choose multiple electives from across disciplines for enhanced student engagement and learning at all levels. The emphasis across all schools will be to engage faculty and students in the creation of knowledge than just its dissemination.
SNU will have a fully residential campus to encourage greater learning — this will help establish a robust research culture.
SNU intends to hire its faculty and researchers from around the globe, not just for academic excellence, but also to lay emphasis on the teachers’ ability to ignite the curiosity and sense of wonder in students. The varsity plans to appoint over 750 faculty members, researchers and staff.
SSN, Chennai, already has established a foreign collaboration with Carnegie Mellon, USA. Having completed 15 years, SSN is one of the top 10 of private engineering institutions. The experience and lessons learned at SSN will be a good stepping ground for SNU. The foundation is in discussions with select top global universities to accelerate the path to excellence at the various schools of SNU.
Expensive venture
The groundwork for SNU began in October 2009. The total construction budget for Phase 1 is `500 crore. “We have embarked on an ambitious mission that will take many years to accomplish and will never be really complete, as every milestone reached will create new ones. The first five years of SNU will be very critical, as they would set the tone for the next 50-100 years,” says Nadar. “I see SNU assembling a very powerful team of academics, researchers and administrators in this period, and unleashing their combined potential in the creation of a really democratic, empowered, performance oriented and excellence-driven culture. My intention is to have global partners to foster research, have joint degree programmes and faculty exchange, to create global leaders of tomorrow,” says the visionary.
Geography matters
On being asked why he chose Greater Noida as the location for the university, the chairman and chief strategy officer of HCL explains, “In 1976, HCL was founded in partnership with the UP government. UP has been one of the key states for HCL where our presence is wide. We have been deeply rooted in the state now for over three decades. Having set up SSN institutions in my home state Tamil Nadu, I thought of bringing this initiative up north and UP was the obvious choice. Since UP hasn’t been at the forefront of education, we wanted to make a difference to the state in our own small way with the setting up of the University,” he says.
SNU’s USP
Nadar, who is nicknamed ‘Magus’ (Old Persian word for wizard) believes that deep industry engagement is key to be current and relevant to business, not simply for vanilla placements.
“When we were planning the university, we were clear that starting from the faculty, education curricula to the infrastructure and environment, we will offer a conducive ecosystem to students which is benchmarked to global standards. Therefore to maintain state-of-the-art architecture across the university, as in all our other initiatives, we wanted to ensure that we retain a vibrant campus environment for our students which reaches global standards,” says a proud Nadar.
Over the first few years, students will be groomed and mentored actively in order to develop the knowledge, skills and attitude most relevant to the industry. “Using the extensive corporate network and reputation that SSN College of Engineering already has, as well as the corporate might of HCL, we intend to provide our students with great opportunities for placements,” states Nadar.
The ills of Indian education
According to Nadar, while the education system in India has clear strengths indicated by the way we outperform global counterparts, our education ecosystem remains straitjacketed by dated curricula, very little research and less scope for cross-disciplinary study.
“When I now see children’s lives being altered the way my own was, by some of the transformational work that Shiv Nadar Foundation is doing, that is something that really sustains and rejuvenates me,” explains the 65-year-old, who completed his BA/BS from PSG College of Engineering, Coimbatore.
Role model
Nadar is deeply inspired by Vinay Bharat Ram, who had mentored him in DCM and offered him a platform to realise his potential by heading DCM’s electronics wing at a very young age in the 1960s.
Shiv Nadar actively supports his wife Kiran Nadar in her artistic endeavours and daughter Roshni Nadar, who is a social entrepreneur.
His philanthropic efforts are committed to create a more equitable, meritocracy-based society by empowering individuals to bridge the socio-economic divide.
For a man who has donned many caps, he feels success is, “something which can be remembered beyond the lifetime of its founders. It is that victory, which not only helps you to rise, but also uplifts the lives of people associated with you and benefits society at large.”
Nadar was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2008. “The recognition was an acknowledgement of the efforts of each HCL employee who has contributed to the growth of the company in its journey from a barsaati (a small holding) to a global enterprise,” he says.
The journey from being a technology entrepreneur to a social entrepreneur is a priceless legacy. Shiv Nadar strikes us as a person who does not forget his roots and cares enough to lay the foundation for the future. The fruit of his efforts is not in the billions of dollars — $5.6 billion, according to Forbes — as assets, but in the billions of lives he has touched.
A strong foundation
The name Shiv Nadar today suggests technology and education. Besides HCL, he founded SSN college of Engineering in Chennai in 1996. Vidyagyan, in Uttar Pradesh, was established in 2009 as a part of the Shiv Nadar Foundation’s efforts to provide world class education to meritorious students. The foundation is also setting up a chain of schools across India to provide kids a right platform to shine in a fast-changing environment. The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, set up in 2010, is India’s first philanthropic private museum.
Go green
SNU has been designed by Delhi-based architects CP Kukreja and Associates. As SSN College has a enviable campus, there’s a lot of buzz in the market about SNU. Apart from it being a green campus Shiv Nadar has kept the building plan under wraps. But edex got in touch with Dikshu Kukreja who spilled the beans on the campus. “The most challenging aspect was to weave in the natural elements of the property — forest on one side and a lake on the other — into the design and create an environment-friendly atmosphere. We have tried to conserve the natural elements, ensured minimum external energy usage, recycling of water in this zero discharge project, used low energy fixtures and environment-friendly renewable material,” explains Kukreja.
“The idea was to create an experience and a sense of belonging for students,” he says. To foster multidisciplinary learning, the classrooms have been designed to include a series of open shared spaces in hierarchical fashion. With Wi-Fi all over campus, the classrooms have been designed to use a lot of natural light.
—preethi@newindianexpress.com