The Vice-President of India and Chancellor of the University of Delhi, Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan, graced as the Chief Guest at the 102nd Convocation of the University of Delhi today and conferred degrees upon over 1.2 lakh graduates. Addressing the gathering, The Vice-President lauded the University’s remarkable 104-year journey and its unwavering commitment to academic excellence and continuity.
Tracing its historic evolution, he observed that the University began with just three colleges, two faculties, eight departments, a modest library of gifted books, and 750 students. Today, it comprises 16 faculties, 86 departments, 90 colleges, 20 halls and hostels, more than 30 centres and institutes, 34 libraries, and over six lakh students.
“Delhi University has indeed come a long way in its historic journey,” he remarked. Appreciating the scale of the ceremony, the Vice-President remarked that the total number of graduating students is more than the population of many countries, reflecting the vast academic footprint of the University.
Describing the University as one of India’s most distinguished institutions of higher learning, the Vice-President said that for over a century it has nurtured minds that have gone on to lead India’s intellectual, political, scientific, and cultural life. He told the graduating students that they now join a remarkable lineage of alumni who have shaped not only India but the world.
Highlighting the University’s growing academic stature, he expressed satisfaction over its consistently improving national and international rankings. He noted that the University has retained the number one position among Indian universities in the QS World University Rankings for four consecutive years.
The Vice-President said that Convocation is not merely a ceremonial event; it marks both an ending and a beginning. It celebrates years of study, discipline, friendships, examinations, and self-discovery, while also signalling the graduates’ formal induction into a larger arena, the arena of responsibility.
He observed that the graduates are stepping into a world undergoing profound transformation. Technology is reshaping industries, artificial intelligence is redefining the nature of work, climate change is challenging models of growth, and democracies across the globe are being tested.
In such a world, he said, a degree is not just a certificate but a commitment, a commitment to serve society, to use one’s skills for the greater good, to live not only for oneself but also for the betterment of the nation, and above all, to uphold the principle of “Nation First -Rashtra Pratham.”
Referring to India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat @ 2047, the Vice-President said that at this crucial juncture, the role of the youth assumes even greater significance. Under the leadership and vision of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, he said, India has articulated the aspiration of becoming an Aatmanirbhar Bharat and building a Viksit Bharat ,a developed India by 2047, when the nation will celebrate 100 years of Independence.
He emphasized that Aatmanirbharta is the capacity to innovate, manufacture, research, and create solutions rooted in Indian realities yet globally competitive. It calls upon universities to become engines of research, entrepreneurship, and indigenous knowledge systems.
Viksit Bharat, he added, stands for inclusive growth, technological leadership, social harmony, environmental sustainability, and transparent and accountable institutions. It aims to ensure that development reaches the last citizen and that opportunity becomes a promise to all.
Addressing the graduates as architects of this vision, the Vice-President said that whether they become scientists, civil servants, entrepreneurs, artists, lawyers, teachers, or innovators, they will shape the India of 2047. The realization of Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Viksit Bharat, he said, will depend on their integrity, competence, compassion, and innovative spirit.
The Vice-President expressed happiness that over 50 percent of graduates and more than 70 percent of the gold medallists are women. He also noted that the number of women receiving degrees this year exceeds that of men. He described this as a reflection of the phenomenal growth of women’s education in India.
He extended his blessings and best wishes to all graduating students for their well-deserved success earned through sustained hard work. In his concluding remarks, the Vice-President urged the graduates to carry forward the spirit of inquiry and to remember that learning is a lifelong process.
He called upon them to remain grateful for the opportunities they have received and mindful of the responsibilities that accompany them. He also urged them to say “No to Drugs” and to use social media constructively rather than becoming enslaved by it. The convocation was attended by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Delhi, Prof. Yogesh Singh, faculty members, other dignitaries, and students.