President Droupadi Murmu advised graduating students of Punjab Engineering College (PEC) to never forget their responsibilities to the motherland, no matter what they choose to become in life.
She was in Chandigarh for the 52nd convocation and closing ceremony of Punjab Engineering College’s centenary year celebrations.
In her remarks to the graduating students, the President stated that as they entered a world of limitless opportunities and possibilities, she had no doubt that they would be able to turn opportunities into successes and possibilities into certainties.
She said that they were the builders of India of tomorrow. It was expected from them that they would use the knowledge acquired in the prestigious institution for doing service to humanity too. She urged the students to keep Mahatma Gandhi’s message of ‘Sarvodaya’ in their individual priorities.
According to Ms. Murmu, the PEC has emerged as a leading research institute and has contributed to global technological change.
“It is the country’s premier institute as well as a forerunner of technical education in this region,” she added.
President Murmu also stated that the number of female students in technical educational institutions should be increased in order to boost the country’s progress.
The President praised the institute, saying she was pleased that it had produced many luminaries for the country.
Prof. Satish Dhawan, former Chairman of ISRO and father of experimental fluid dynamics research in India, Prof. R. N. Dogra, eminent educationist and founder Director of IIT-
Delhi, and Dr. Satish Kumar, an expert in missile technology and strategic systems, are among its notable alumni.
Ms. Murmu noted that Kalpana Chawla, a PEC aeronautical engineering department alumna, became the first woman astronaut of Indian origin and established an inspiring history of self-sacrifice for science.
Noting that the Kalpana Chawla Chair of Geospatial Technology has been established in the institute, she said, “The number of girl students should be increased in technical educational institutions to give more impetus to the progress of the country.”
