Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, addressed IIT-BHU’s “Alumni Awards of Excellence 2021-22” at an event organized in New Delhi.On the occasion, the Lt Governor paid tributes and remembered Mahamana Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya Ji and extended his best wishes to those who received the Alumni Award of Excellence.The Lt Governor said that the credit for the country's first industrial policy goes to Mahamana who had laid the foundation of technical education in India.“After tireless efforts, Mahamana established the Banaras Engineering College (BENCO) in 1919. Today, that small engineering campus of BHU has grown into a prominent institution in the field of technical education from where thousands of famous personalities have completed their higher education and played an important role in the economic and educational progress of our country”, he added.
Speaking on the role of alumni of higher education institutions in the era of globalization, the Lt Governor said alumni are critical to the success of higher education institutions. They build and develop the institute's brand, besides guiding new students, providing internships, and creating a host of career opportunities for our youths.He said alumni, whether from the field of engineering or science, have a great responsibility to eliminate digital divide to bring villages and cities closer to each other. Alumni can contribute significantly in ending the inequality prevailing in the society, he added.The Lt Governor underlined that the relationship between universities and students is a lifelong commitment and in this mutual relationship alumni are a resource that plays a more meaningful role with changing times.
The Lt Governor made special mention of the invaluable contribution of Dr Kota Harinarayana for making the country's first indigenous Light Combat Aircraft-Tejas. He also lauded IIT-BHU's electrical engineering alumnus, Ms Irina Ghose, who is director at Microsoft, and Sh Arun Bhandari for his work in education, healthcare, rural sports, and environment.The Lt Governor expressed hope that every student who comes out of IIT-BHU will go ahead with the same dedication, enthusiasm and spirit with which Mahamana founded this institute for working towards raising the standard of living of crores of countrymen.The Lt Governor said proper development of knowledge and skills along with resources is imperative for building a civilized society. The wealth of knowledge of former and present students can find solutions to all kinds of physical, cultural needs for establishing the welfare nation as envisioned by Mahamana.
The Lt Governor underlined the contribution of Mahamana to variety of fields including modern agriculture, advocating abolition of agriculture tax, promotion of railways and commerce, setting up shipbuilding, manufacturing units, besides promoting Commerce and Industries Department in all the provinces and mobilizing resources of modern India.Referring to the recent decision of the Union cabinet in which the program for the development of semiconductor and display manufacturing ecosystem in the country has been approved with an incentive amount of Rs 2 lakh 30 thousand crore, the Lt Governor urged the students and alumni to actively participate in this campaign and help the government in making the country stronger with new innovations in the field of aerospace to IT-enabled services.Sh Pawan Munjal, Chairman, Hero Motor Group; Sh Rajeev Gupta; Professor B B Dhar; members of Governing Body of IIT BHU Alumni Association besides other dignitaries and alumni of BHU were present on the occasion.