Delhi University marks 101st convocation

Delhi University (DU) celebrated its 101st convocation on Saturday. The chief guest, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, awarded digital degrees to 166,494 students.

Of these, 82,592 are School of Open Learning students, of which 79,742 are undergraduates and 2,850 are postgraduates, and 83,902 are regular students and Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board (NCWEB) students. Of the latter, 77,227 are undergraduates, 6,646 are postgraduates and 29 are students from five-year programmes, according to DU officials.

Addressing the event, DU vice chancellor Yogesh Sindh said, “Hard work makes even the seemingly impossible tasks possible.” He reminded students that there should be no conflict between their interest and the country’s interest as they move forward and expressed pride in the graduating students.

Pradhan called on students to make a pledge to make Delhi the knowledge hub of the world. “There would be no district or village in the country where the footprints of DU have not reached. DU is not just a university, but a mini-India. At least 700,000 students study here in direct and open learning mode. Students from 85 countries of the world are also studying here,” he said.

During the convocation, 623 PhD students — 316 and 307 women — also received their degrees.

A total of 194 medals and prizes were also given during the convocation in which 159 gold medals and one silver medal were awarded to UG and PG students. At least 34 prizes were also given to UG and PG students. Pradhan awarded medals to 10 talented students during the programme.

Pradhan said that the National Education Policy-2020 (NEP), which has come from the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was implemented first by DU.

“The Prime Minister has resolved to make the country a Viksit Bharat by 2047, and this will be possible only when NEP is implemented properly in the entire country. We must stay connected to our roots and also look at the future, only then will we be ready for the future,” Pradhan said.