Assam Governor attends first convocation of Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management

HT Correspondent
SIVASAGAR, Dec 28: The first convocation of Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management (ARGUCOM) was held on Wednesday at Demow Pathar campus of the university. The Governor of Assam Prof Jagdish Mukhi presided over the function held on the occasion and conferred the degree certificates to over a hundred postgraduates and PhD degree holders from the university.
In his speech, the Governor spoke on the National Education Policy 2020 and said that the Indian education system is going through transformative changes with the introduction of the National Education Policy. He said that he is hopeful that this policy will address the needs of the 21st century. Providing quality education by addressing the needs of the students and creating lifelong learning opportunities is the main objective behind the National Education Policy. Therefore, to take full advantage of the possibilities that the NEP has opened up, the universities have to prepare themselves
The Governor also said that cooperatives are the engines of economic growth which are contributing to dynamic and promising business models for social and economic empowerment. He also added that in a country where a huge chunk of the workforce is associated with cooperatives, the sector plays an important role in generating employment directly and indirectly in diverse sectors like agriculture, fishery, animal husbandry, finance, health, textile, etc. He said that cooperation is a sector which impacts India’s rural economy, touching almost every rural life. It is a vital component to ‘ease of living’ enhancing both value and viability across the value chain.
Prof Mukhi also said that in the 21st century, skill should be the main mantra for higher education institutions. The students should be equipped with different skills apart from their normal course curriculum in order to make them self-reliant. Through different collaborations of national and international level, adequate exposure should be provided to the students.
He lauded Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management for initiating different activities for entrepreneurship development and starting ‘Innovation Award’ for its students to encourage innovative activities.
It may be noted that a total of 108 students of doctoral, post graduate and undergraduate levels, who have passed out from 2016 to 2022, received their degrees in various disciplines in the convocation held on Wednesday.
Attending the function as the chief guest, Air Marshal (Rtd) Anjan Kumar Gogoi urged the students and the faculty to transform the society to make India stronger. He further said that today’s world is a VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity) world considering the challenges faced by humanity. Today’s students need to develop multi-disciplinary skills as prescribed by the UN Millennium Development Goals. He also urged the students to be grateful for the opportunities provided by their family, society, and the country besides having one’s own ideas. Gogoi said that the students have a role to play in the future security of the nation as well.
Earlier, the vice-chancellor of ARGUCOM Dr Debabrata Das, in his welcome address, expressed his gratitude to the Governor for lending support to the university from the beginning. Dr Das said that the university in its 10-year journey has been able to make an impact in the academic sphere in a new direction – the cooperative sector. He said that the university has been trying to remodel its courses as suggested by the NEP 2020 and transform it into a multidisciplinary university from its present three schools of teaching – the School of Entrepreneurship & Management, the School of Innovation & Technology, and the School of Public Policy and Law.
It may be mentioned that the university is still running from a hired building in Jaysagar, 3 km from the Sivasagar town as the government has not yet provided the financial support for its permanent infrastructure at Demow Pathar. There is also some thinking going on in the government circle to merge the state university with the Sibsagar College which has attained the status of an autonomous institution.
On Wednesday, the alumni meet ‘Reminiscence 2020’ was also held at the university and the alumni exchanged ideas with the fresher and the teachers besides holding a cultural show. The convocation was attended by vice chancellors of various universities of the state, principals of numerous colleges and a host of other dignitaries were also present at the ceremony.