New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said education is gradually becoming a new medium of engagement with neighbouring countries and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati can become a pivotal centre for the same.
PM Modi while addressing the 22nd convocation of the IIT-G through video-conferencing, said, “Guwahati is an important part of the northeast, and it is also the centre of India’s Act East Policy. This region is also the gateway to India’s relation with South East Asia. The mainstay of relations with these countries has been culture, commerce, connectivity and capacity. Education is gradually becoming a new medium of engagement with our neighbours. IIT Guwahati can become a pivotal centre for the same.”
“I want to say to the passing students to think about their research and how it can help the north-east region for development,” Modi said, while addressing the students.
PM Modi said that IIT Guwahati is the first such IIT that has introduced a two-year research program on e-mobility and it is also leading the integration of science and engineering in all B.Tech level courses.
He also hoped that research would become a habit for the graduates and a part of their thought process.
“There are immense possibilities in research in the sector of solar energy, wind energy, biomass and hydroelectric energy. Rice, tea and bamboo are indigenous of this region. There is biodiversity in this region, as well as huge traditional knowledge,” he said.
The Prime Minister added, “Infrastructure is being built in sectors such as railways, highways, water ways and air ways to give impetus to development in the northeast. The IIT-G has a major role in these initiatives for creating new opportunities in the entire region.”
“Knowledge has no boundaries. The National Education Policy (NEP) focuses on opening up the education sector for global institutes to set up their campus in India for our students to benefit from. Similarly, Indian institutes will set up their centres abroad. This will help promote research collaboration and exchange programmes,” Modi said.
Furthermore, he stated, “The states of northeast invest a lot of energy and efforts in fighting off disasters such as floods and earthquakes. I request IIT Guwahati to start a Centre for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction. This centre will provide expertise to combat these calamities,” he added.
Disasters, natural and man-made, have been a bane for the northeast comprising eight states.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal also participated in the event.
The convocation was held in a virtual reality mode where avatars of students collected their degrees and medal from the director’s avatar.
In addition to this, IIT has also created a photo-booth, with an option of different backgrounds, for students to take pictures at some selected locations on the campus. IIT Guwahati’s faculty and students have developed a telepresence module for a virtual visit to the institute.
-CHK
