Anil Sahasrabudhe, chairman, All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), while stating that young outgoing graduates had the capability to contribute towards the country’s growth, underlined the need for them to be a catalyst for change in the process of development by making full use of the opportunities before them.

He was delivering the seventh convocation address of the Vijayanagara Sri Krishnadevaraya University here on Tuesday.

Addressing students, Mr. Sahasrabudhe said: “You have a great opportunity and responsibility. Whether Make in India, Digital India, Startup India, Smart cities, or Unnat Bharat Abhiyaan, you have a role to play. I urge upon you to be the catalyst for change and I’m confident that each one of you has the capability to contribute towards the country’s growth and development.”

Stressing on the need for improving the quality of education, especially in the wake of reports about unemployment of graduates, Mr. Sahasrabudhe said that the lacunae pointed out by the industry were lack of soft skills such as effective communication skills, team work, discipline, problem of solving ability, critical thinking analytical abilities, professional and ethical practice, values among others.

“To over come these lacunae, colleges and universities need to on priority include industry linkage, research and innovation, national and international networks, enhanced involvement of alumni, among other things and expose the students to opportunities available to them,” he said.

Giving a piece of advice to the fresh graduates, he said that the world outside was not as cozy as their home or college or university and wanted them to be very confident, have positive attitude and face challenges that come in their way with a smile.

“You have to set your goals in life and pursue them with passion and commitment. The main thing is to look for opportunities that you really like and have persistence and faith. At the same time, to succeed, the first thing you need is to be in good health and capacity to work. Hard work is one of the basic pre-requisites of success,” he said.

Degrees

At the colourful convocation, degrees were conferred on 9,678 students — 26 PhD, 1,660 master degrees, and 7,992 undergraduates.

Among them, 72 students — 54 postgraduates and 18 undergraduates — have bagged gold medals. In the absence of Governor Vajubhai Vala, who is also the Chancellor of the university, M.S. Subhas, Vice-Chancellor, did the honours.

Dadi Hrudaya Mohini of Eshwariya Vishwavidyalaya Mount Abu was conferred with honorary doctorate in absentia.