Kolkata, March 18, 2025

The AIU East Zone Vice Chancellors Meet 2024-2025 commenced with JIS University as the host university, bringing together distinguished academic leaders and vice chancellors across Eastern India. The prestigious event was inaugurated by H.E. Dr. C.V. Ananda Bose, Governor of West Bengal, in the esteemed presence of Prof. Vinay Kumar Pathak, President, AIU; Prof. V. N. Rajasekharan Pillai, Vice President, AIU; Dr. Pankaj Mittal, Secretary General, AIU; Prof. Partha Pratim Chakrabarti, Former Director, IIT Kharagpur; Sardar Taranjit Singh, Managing Director, JIS Group; Sardar Simarpreet Singh, Director, JIS Group; and Dr. Bhabes Bhattacharya, Vice Chancellor, JIS University. The two-day conference has convened Vice Chancellors from over 100 universities to deliberate on the evolving landscape of higher education under the theme "Equity, Diversity & Sustainability."

On this special occasion, it was announced that the Governor of West Bengal has decided to confer the Governor’s Award of Excellence on the Association of Indian Universities (AIU). This award is being presented to AIU in recognition of its outstanding contributions to higher education, academic leadership and institutional excellence. The Governor’s Award of Excellence will be presented at a future event and will include a citation, a trophy symbolising the highest standards of academic achievement and innovation, along with a cash prize of Rs. 2 lakhs. This award reflects our commitment to strengthening higher education and honouring those who play a pivotal role in advancing knowledge, research and academic collaboration.

The Governor in his address, said, “Nelson Mandela once called education ‘the most powerful weapon’ for changing the world. In India, where classrooms shape the nation’s destiny, the challenge isn’t just excellence—it’s relevance.  A vice chancellor’s constitutional duty is to push for higher achievement. The new generation is ready. India is strong. Give them the order and they’ll scale the fortress of knowledge. The world runs on knowledge, and Indian universities are producing the talent that fuels it.  Yet, education without impact is an exercise in futility. ‘If the student hasn’t learned, the teacher hasn’t taught,’ goes the old dictum. India’s youth are thriving in AI and IT, proving their teachers have delivered. Three cheers to the educators shaping India’s ascent.  Education is what remains after classroom lessons are forgotten. India’s first education reform report, led by Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, warned that the system was ‘thrice removed from reality.’ Decades later, the disconnect between education and employment remains stark.  Enlightenment without economic utility is just theory. India’s latest education policy aims to fix that, shifting from a Eurocentric framework to one rooted in indigenous knowledge. This isn’t about replacing science with superstition—it’s about practical skills over outdated rote learning. The real test is whether education fosters leadership, sharpens decision-making and trains individuals to distinguish perception from reality. Education should equip individuals to discern between perception and reality. India’s education reforms are a step toward bridging this gap.”

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SSS/18.3.25/….

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