New Delhi, 21 June 2018: South Asian University, an International University based in New Delhi, conducted its third convocation at the Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. A total of 176 students were conferred Masters, MPhil and PhD Degrees in various programmes that include Applied Mathematics, Biotechnology, Computer Science, Development Economics, International Relations, Legal Studies and Sociology.
7 programme toppers were honoured with the SAU Gold Medal – one each from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and 5 from India. Students from the entire South Asia region were present at the convocation. Out of the total number of graduates, 21 were from Afghanistan, 17 from Bangladesh, 5 from Bhutan, 11 from Nepal, 5 from Pakistan and one from Sri Lanka and France while the rest 99 are from India.
10 students will get their MPhil Degrees – two from Nepal, one from Bangladesh and 7 from India. For the first time since its inception, South Asian University handed out its PhD Degrees to 6 of its scholars – one each from Afghanistan and Bangladesh and 4 from India, representing various Departments and Faculties.
South Asia has a common enemy called poverty and the young minds of the region should find ways and means to unleash the true potential of collective strength to transform the region through rapid economic growth and defeat this common enemy, Mr. Giriraj Mani Pokhrel, Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Government of Nepal said at the convocation of South Asian University.
Presided over by Mr. Pokhrel, the convocation also saw the presence of Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, President, ICCR and Member of Rajya Sabha as the Chief Guest, Mr. Amjad Hussain B Sial, the Secretary General of SAARC along with other members of SAU’s statutory bodies from around the South Asia region.
He further said as the current chair of the SAARC, Nepal would give full support and cooperation to the SAARC process and particularly to the South Asian Unviersity, which he said was a dream of the visionaries of the region. Mr. Pokhrel was presiding over the convocation as the nominee of SAU’s Visitor, who is the Chairperson of the SAARC.
While congratulating the students who received their degrees, Dr Vinay Sahasrabuddhe reiterated the importance of the day i.e. 7 June as it was on this day Mahatama Gandhi resolved to fight injustice when on this day he was thrown off of the first class compartment of a train in South Africa. He said that the empowered youth of the region should fight for unity and harmony in the region and SAU could be converted into a universal fraternity university.
In her speech, Dr. Kavita Sharma, President – SAU, congratulated the graduates and shared her hope for the region as more and more young minds of the region are equipped with cutting-edge knowledge in the fields of Science and Social Sciences, in an inimitable environment of camaraderie. She said that the co-operation among the students in South Asian University drawn from different parts of South Asia is nothing but inspiring.
Mandated to inculcate a sense of regional consciousness among the young minds of the South Asia region while imparting cutting-edge knowledge, South Asian University was established by the governments of the eight SAARC nations. The university took off in 2010 with two Masters Degree Programmes. Today, SAU offers seven Masters and an equal number of Doctoral Programmes.
SAARC Secretary General, Mr. Amjad Hussain Sial said that with the knowledge and education that the graduates have acquired from the University will play an important role in the development of the South Asian countries and the region. He also thanked the Government of India for allocating a 100 acre land in New Delhi and its magnanimous contribution for constructing the permanent campus of the university.
The construction of the permanent campus of the South Asian University is going on in Maidan Garhi in New Delhi.
