On India’s 77th Independence Day, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hyderabad (UoH), Prof. B J Rao, hoisted the National Flag at Prof. Gurbaksh Singh Maidan in the University campus, in the presence of Deans, Heads, Faculty, Registrar, Officers, students and staff.

The nation has been celebrating Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, Har Ghar Tiranga, Meri Maati Mera Desh in remembrance of the brave martyrs who laid down their lives for freedom.

 

The Vice-Chancellor congratulated the University fraternity for organising and participating in various events on campus.

 

 

Prof. B J Rao paid rich tributes to the leaders who brought independence, and to the institutional leaders, who laid the foundation to the excellence of the University, which is now among the Top in India and abroad.

Later 500 saplings consisting of Tulsi, Neem, Amla and Lemon Grass were distributed to students by Prof B J Rao and Dr Devesh Nigam, Registrar. A healthy millets buffet lunch was also arranged for the participants at the university guest house.

 

Prof. R.S. Sarraju, Pro Vice-Chancellor, hoisted the National Flag at the Golden Threshold campus of the University and planted trees on the occasion.

 

The full speech of the Vice-Chancellor can be read below:

Dear faculty colleagues, officers, staff, students, children and invited guests: Greetings to everyone assembled here for the 77th Independence Day celebrations.

Our country functions as a secular, democratic and republic nation under the framework of the Constitution. We have also gained respect and admiration among the nations of the world for continued upholding of the principles of democracy.  Let us pay tributes to all those who made supreme sacrifices and fought for our independence and made us a proud Republic. Freedom and the Constitution have given us rights, along with greater responsibilities.  Here, today, I plan to give a brief status report on the UoH’s happenings/accomplishments recently.

There are 40+ active MoU’s entered into by the University and I appeal to all stakeholders to utilize the benefits out of it.

The MoU with DRDO (DIA – DRDO-Industry-Academia – -CoE UoH) (25 years) with the objective that the DIA-CoE UoH will facilitate and undertake multidisciplinary directed basic and applied research in the research verticals-Design and development of high energy materials. The MoU with Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), Basar (2 years) with main objectives of the MoU is to provide guidance for preparation of consolidated programmes in the sphere of Higher Education at RGUKT, Basar and to evolve perspective plans for Internationalization of Higher Education in the State and promote betterment of technical education in RGUKT.

The Office for International Affairs has been engaging with several foreign delegates, including representatives from University of Gottingen, Germany, Asia University, Taiwan, Singapore Management University and Monash University, some with whom we already have collaborations with and are further strengthening our ties.  An MoU was also signed with Freie Universitat, Berlin as well as with University of Auckland marking important milestones in our efforts to foster collaborations.

In addition, OIA has been exploring potential partnerships with RSUH (Rusian State University of Humanities), Moscow and SMU (Singapore Management University) in Singapore, with the aim of expanding and reinforcing our global partnerships. Earlier this year, we organized a Fulbright outreach program that catered to all students and researchers. Moreover, there have been visits from esteemed delegations such as the Swedish Higher Education and Research Delegation, as well as the Embassy of France, who made visits to UoH. These visits have contributed to fostering international relations. Furthermore, the Australian National University conducted the Future Research Talent Program, granting scholarships to three exceptional students who were selected. In April we had a meeting held with the Erasmus+ HARMONY project coordinators from Spain and Slovenia. With the funding received from this Erasmus project we inaugurated the “Friends Tea House” that was set up to create a social space for international students for an intercultural experience in the Study in India Program Building.    I earnestly hope that Friends Tea House is really put to good use that is intended.

As of date, the university received substantial number of applications totalling 1250, through the ICCR A2A (Admission to Alumni) portal out of which 117 students were recommended from all the schools and departments. A total number of 19 students and researchers have been given the ICCR scholarships this A.Y 2023-24. We have received more applications from the SII portal and under the self-financed category.

The 2023 NIRF Rankings place UoH at the 10th spot among all the universities. We need to put in more efforts and ensure that we move up in the rankings. It is also a moment of pride that our university continues to be in the top position in Nature Index 2023 ranking. It has been ranked First among universities category in India. According to the QS World University Rankings 2023, we place ourselves at 751-800 rank globally and 23 in the country. No 359 in the world in the ‘Citations per Faculty.’ Although we are doing good in some parameters, our overall ranking needs improvement, which is also linked with global perception and visibility, among others. I am sure you all will join me in putting extra effort to take our university to the next level of research and Innovation.

The first half of the year has been busy for the IQAC. We received reviews from NAAC, NIRF and QS. The IQAC has reviewed these reports and devised an action plan to enable us to advance.

  1. The IQAC team has been interacting with the faculty of all schools, underlining the importance of working together and doubling our efforts when it comes to teaching, research and outreach. To ensure that we have our data updated, everyone has been requested to update their SAMARTH profiles. Updated profiles will be used for future PBAS (Performance Based Appraisal System) /APAR, CAS, etc.
  1. The IQAC organised an Academic Audit workshop and urged all units to complete the audit based on OBE (Outcome Based Education) parameters as mandated by NAAC. It has urged the University community to publish in higher quartile-ranked journals, which will give research at UoH greater visibility and recognition.
  1. While intellectual growth, professional development and career growth are essential, it is also necessary that we connect with the community outside the University and give back to society. The IQAC has requested units to encourage more student participation in activities, reconnect with their alumni, and increase outreach and extension activities. IQAC encourages departments to prepare brief scientific, intellectual and artistic biographies of their respective units.
  1. IQAC has taken-up various outreach activities. It is undertaking a comprehensive Green Energy Audit of the University to showcase the campus contribution to the overall well-being of the global city. The IQAC is also planning to hold National and International Conferences on Sustainable Development later this year, and it seeks the active participation of the university community in its endeavours.

Our faculty members are actively engaged in high-impact, high-quality research. Continuously we augment our research infrastructure. As a result, in 2023 (so far), we published approximately 600 high-quality research papers (as per the Scopus database) in Journals of International repute. Our faculty members are executing around 190 projects of approximately 120 Crores on campus (as of July, 2023). From February 2023 to July 2023, we submitted around 151 research projects and consultancy projects and received the sanction of 56 research projects/consultancy projects from different funding agencies – nationally and Internationally. We are slowly building our IP portfolio. During the last five years, 31 patents were granted to UoH faculty, apart from 33 patents in different stages of the process.

We have also undertaken a large number of recruitments under Mission Mode and CAS promotions for the faculty. We were also the first university to join UGC CHAYAN portal for faculty recruitment. Several non-teaching employees were also promoted and granted financial upgradations under MACP scheme. We have just concluded a massive DPC for non-teaching staff and now we have moved on to new CRR system, based on which all fresh recruitments of non-teaching staff will happen.

The Institution of Eminence (IoE) programme is now in the final phase of its tenure. The construction of new buildings, such as the interdisciplinary centre, human resource development centre and guest house have picked up pace and are expected to be ready in the second half of 2024. Other buildings including the Lecture Hall complex, administrative building, 400-seater hostels (one each for boys and girls) are in the design phase and construction is expected to start shortly. The purchase of all high-end equipment is expected to be completed in this financial year and some of them will be delivered in the next few months. Major investments have also been made in improving the library and e-infrastructure, repairs, maintenance and renovation of existing equipment and buildings. The restoration of the Golden Threshold building has also been undertaken and is expected to be completed in the next 12 months.

It is heartening to note that all schemes announced under IoE during the last twelve months have seen very good response from all stakeholders of the University. For example, 32 PG students have received the student achievers award. Over 60 non-NET fellows have received the publication-based incentive and more than 40 faculty members were sanctioned funds under the special call for research proposals from faculty members belonging to SC/ST/Women/PWD categories (this is a scheme unique to our university). Over 100 PhD students and faculty members have received a grant to travel abroad for a conference and more than 50 national and international conferences have been held in the last 12 months alone. Apart from this, more than 100 faculty members received the IoE professional development fund and 60 IoE post-doctoral research Fellows have been recruited so far. On the internationalisation front, eminent persons from prestigious Universities such as Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; University of Bradford, UK; Australian National University, Australia and a distinguished artist from Australia have accepted our invitation to occupy the IoE- Chair Professor position. The IoE funds have been used to support every aspect of the University’s functioning. But, in this short message, it is not possible to list out all the schemes.

While we continue to invest in the future of the University, it is important to recognise that IoE is a time bound programme and the outcomes as well as impact on the University profile and ranking are very closely monitored.  It is imperative, therefore, that all stakeholders commit themselves to ensure that the IoE status for our university is justified.

It’s a rare honour that two of our faculty members; Professor KC James Raju and Prof Surajit Dhara from the School of Physics, University of Hyderabad, were presented with the Visitor’s Award 2021 in the category of Technology Development and Physical Sciences, respectively. Prof. Anunay Samanta, School of Chemistry was selected for the Visitor’s Award 2020, but awarded in the year 2021.

A total of 37009 Degrees awarded till date are made available in the National Academic Depository (NAD Digi locker). We have also successfully boarded the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) and all the semester exam results will be uploaded in the ABC portal.

The Samarth e-Governance implementation is in progress and the University completed all the admissions for AY 2022-23 through the Samarth. Cooperation of all stakeholders is requested for faster boarding of all the modules for complete digitalization of the governance processes in the University.

We have more than 37,000 alumni and would like involve them in the activities of the university and encourage them to contribute more for the progress and eminence of our university.  Several of them are working across the globe in different organizations in different capacities and we are proud of their career progression.  The University Alumni Cell has been constituted as per guidelines of the UGC. A dedicated webpage on the university website has been initiated. May I request all of you to help in disseminating it among the alumni in your contact list?

Innovation Space:

You are all aware of our Section 8 Company (not-for-profit) Association for Scientific Pursuits for Innovative Research Enterprises (ASPIRE) at UoH.

During the last 5 years, ASPIRE has supported over 100 start-ups are focusing completely on deep tech innovative product/ technology development. More than 45 start-ups graduated and 54 start-ups are being incubated at ASPIRE. During the last one year, we have added 15 new physical startups and 8 virtual startups. So far, more than 15 technologies were developed, 35 patents filed and 5 technologies were commercialized by start-ups and raised more than Rs. 100.00 crores of follow-up funding from different sources. In addition, they provided employment for more than 200 persons.

May I call for all support from the group of students, faculty, officers and administrative staff to make UoH a vibrant campus and work hard to fly high and become not only the best University in the country but a top ranking one globally.

Warm greetings, once again, on this 77th Independence Day to everyone present here, with tributes to our national leaders who brought us this freedom and built such a strong foundation through the Constitution.

 

JAI HIND, JAI BHARATH