MADURAI: Amid protests, the 54th annual convocation of the Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU) was held on Wednesday but the event was boycotted by pro-chancellor and Minister for Higher Education K Ponmudy.
During his presidential address, Governor and Chancellor RN Ravi told the students to dream big and work hard to achieve them. The Governor also spoke about the contributions of former Chief Minister 'Karma Veerar Kamrajar' in the upliftment of the people.
"Kamrajar actively participated in the freedom movement and after independence, he contributed to revolutionising industries and agriculture. He played a pivotal role in starting Neyveli Lignite Corporation and IIT Madras," the Governor said.
He also spoke about how the Britishers exploited people with the divide and rule policy and a ridiculous education system. "Three things are key to achieving our goals - capital, motivation and know-how. If you have motivation, you will easily acquire the other two ingredients. In the year 2014, 70,000 start-ups were created by youngsters in various sectors and have made a difference," he pointed out.
Union Minister L Murugan, in his guest of honour address, said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was spreading the pride of Tamil across the globe and has been urging children to study their regional languages. He further listed the Central government’s various schemes, including ‘Khelo India’ and ‘Operation Ganga’ under which 24,000 medical students were evacuated from Ukraine safely.
During the event, Chair Professor R Balaram from National Centre for Biological Sciences, Banglore, said higher education in India needed ‘intensive care’, as the quality of varsities has been on a steady decline over the decades. After the formal launch of NEP, it was discussed in seminars rather than being implemented, he said. He further briefed the significance of the book, Sapiens, written by Israeli Historian Yuval Harari, which traces the evolution of humankind.
MKU Vice-Chancellor J Kumar welcomed the gathering and presented the annual report. As many as 912 candidates received their PhDs and 176 students received meritorious awards.
Stir staged against Governor
Members of various Tamil outfits including Periyar Dravidar Kalagam staged a protest against Governor Ravi for inviting Union minister L Murugan as the guest of honour. They were detained