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Published on Tuesday, 12 June 2018

SAU Awarded Its First Set of PhD Degrees, along with 10 MPhil and 160 Masters Degrees

Education Minister of Nepal Gave Away The Degrees at the Third SAU Convocation

New Delhi, 7 June 2018: South Asia has a common enemy called poverty and the young minds of the region should find ways and means to unleash the true potential of collective strength to transform the region through rapid economic growth and defeat this common enemy, Mr. Giriraj Mani Pokhrel, Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Government of Nepal said at the convocation of South Asian University.

South Asian University conducted its third convocation at the Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. Presided over by Mr. Pokhrel, the convocation also saw the presence of Dr. Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, President, ICCR and Member of Rajya Sabha as the Chief Guest, Mr. Amjad Hussain B Sial, the Secretary General of SAARC along with other members of SAU’s statutory bodies from around the South Asia region.

He further said as the current chair of the SAARC, Nepal would give full support and cooperation to the SAARC process and particularly to the South Asian Unviersity, which he said was a dream of the visionaries of the region. Mr. Pokhrel was presiding over the convocation as the nominee of SAU’s Visitor, who is the Chairperson of the SAARC.

While congratulating the students who received their degrees, Dr Vinay Sahasrabuddhe reiterated the importance of the day i.e. 7 June as it was on this day Mahatama Gandhi resolved to fight injustice when on this day he was thrown off of the first class compartment of a train in South Africa. He said that the empowered youth of the region should fight for unity and harmony in the region and SAU could be converted into a universal fraternity university.

A total of 176 students were conferred Masters, MPhil and PhD Degrees in various programmes that include Applied Mathematics, Biotechnology, Computer Science, Development Economics, International Relations, Legal Studies and Sociology. 7 programme toppers were honoured with the SAU Gold Medal – one each from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and 5 from India. Students from the entire South Asia region were present at the convocation. Out of the total number of graduates, 21 were from Afghanistan, 17 from Bangladesh, 5 from Bhutan, 11 from Nepal, 5 from Pakistan and one from Sri Lanka and France while the rest 99 are from India. 10 students will get their MPhil Degrees – two from Nepal, one from Bangladesh and 7 from India. For the first time since its inception, South Asian University handed out its PhD Degrees to 6 of its scholars – one each from Afghanistan and Bangladesh and 4 from India, representing various Departments and Faculties.

In her speech, Dr. Kavita Sharma, President – SAU, congratulated the graduates and shared her hope for the region as more and more young minds of the region are equipped with cutting-edge knowledge in the fields of Science and Social Sciences, in an inimitable environment of camaraderie. She said that the co-operation among the students in South Asian University drawn from different parts of South Asia is nothing but inspiring.

Mandated to inculcate a sense of regional consciousness among the young minds of the South Asia region while imparting cutting-edge knowledge, South Asian University was established by the governments of the eight SAARC nations. The university took off in 2010 with two Masters Degree Programmes. Today, SAU offers seven Masters and an equal number of Doctoral Programmes.

SAARC Secretary General, Mr. Amjad Hussain Sial said that with the knowledge and education that the graduates have acquired from the University will play an important role in the development of the South Asian countries and the region. He also thanked the Government of India for allocating a 100 acre land in New Delhi and its magnanimous contribution for constructing the permanent campus of the university.

The construction of the permanent campus of the South Asian University is going on in Maidan Garhi in New Delhi.

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About South Asian University:

South Asian University (SAU) is an international university established, funded and maintained by the governments of the eight member nations of South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) viz. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. SAU started its operations from the academic year 2010. The university now offers Masters and MPhil/PhD research programs in seven disciplines that include Economics, Computer Science, Biotechnology, Applied Mathematics, Sociology, International Relations and Legal Studies. SAU attracts students from all over South Asia, and its degrees are recognized by all the eight SAARC countries. Many of its graduates have already found employment in the region and some have been offered higher education opportunities in countries beyond South Asia as well.

The university is currently functioning from Akbar Bhawan, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi and construction of the permanent campus has started over a 100 acre plot in Maidan Garhi, South Delhi in late May 2016.

For further details, please write to Mr. Prahlad, Public Relations Officer, SAU at prahlad@sau.int or call him at +91 9871494338

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Published on Thursday, 02 June 2016

SOUTH ASIAN UNIVERSITY CONVOCATION – 2016

New Delhi: South Asian University will be organising its maiden Convocationon 11 June 2016at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. Mr. Kamal Thapa, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Nepal, will preside over the ceremony and give away the degrees. Gen (Dr) VK Singh (Retd), Minister of State for External Affairs of India, will be the Chief Guest.

Aproximately about 450 students will be receiving their degrees while 31 of them will be receiving SAU Gold Medals for excellence in academic performance. Students from all the eight SAARC countries will be present at theconvocation. These will include some gradutes who have graduated prior to 2016 as well. Many members of the University’s Governing Board, Executive Council, Academic Council and Finance Committee will attend theconvocationalong with academicians and other dignitaries.

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Published on Tuesday, 26 April 2016

Phantoms-In-Transit – An Intriguing Solo Exhibition Inaugurated

12 April 2016: A solo exhibition tilted Phantoms-in-Transit by a young artist Subrata Das was inaugurated today by Dr. Kavita A. Sharma at the South Asian University Gallery in Akbar Bhawan, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. The exhibition unravels the lives and experiences of the migrant workers across cities. Seemingly, they become phantoms-in-transit in various parts of South Asia. The artist effectively captures the struggle, the journey and their experiences through an immaculately done dozen pieces in various mediums.

This series brings out the subtlety and mundane experience of construction labourers, who flock the urban locations all around South Asia from the countryside to help construct buildings, roads and other infrastructure. Such labouring hands seldom get the opportunity to experience the luxuries of living in the high-rises they build. In return for constructing such spectacular structures, they merely make a pittance, and gingerly return to the localities with unfulfilled fantasies. This series invites viewers to interrogate this structure of non-glamorous reality.

Subrata Das is a Delhi based visual artist and was trained at the College of Art, Delhi. The exhibition, which happens to be his debut solo show, will be on for public from 12 April 2016 till 1 May 2016.

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Published on Wednesday, 09 December 2015

SAARC Nations Should Solve Their Problems Together, Says Professor Gohwer Rizvi

New Delhi: Many of the major challenges facing the South Asian countries are trans-national and need to be solved together as most of them cannot be solved by national governments of the region in isolation, said Professor Gowher Rizvi. He said the complementarity of the nations of this region needs to be acknowledged and the region can become the largest market in the world.

Professor Gowher Rizvi, international affairs advisor to the prime minister of Bangladesh, was speaking at the 31st SAARC Charter Day celebration at the South Asian University. The day commemorates the signing of the charter of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation by seven heads of state in Kathmandu in 1985. After the idea of establishing a SAARC University was mooted by the then Prime Minister of India in the Dhaka Summit of SAARC in 2005, Prof. Gowher Rizvi, was entrusted with the task of preparing the Concept Paper for SAU. The South Asian University became operational in the year 2010 with its first batch of students.

SAU should be the breeding ground for future leaders of the region where they live, think and learn together. The university should become a world-class educational institution in the near future and it should expedite the South Asian Consciousness, he added.

Commenting about SAARC, he said the achievements of the regional body cannot be undermined and its failure, if at all, should not be its own making as it is what the member nations allow it to be. He further commented that the member nations should explore and take advantage of the enormous commonality that the countries share and the geographical proximity they enjoy with each other.

The event was chaired by Dr. Kavita A. Sharma, the President of SAU. She said the celebration of events like the SAARC Day, which is an annual affair at the university, is one of the ways to underline the importance of co-operation. She said the South Asian region could achieve much more with increased co-operation in various fields.

A panel discussion on the topic “Enhancing Economic Cooperation and Peace in SAARC” was also held. The discussion saw the participation of noted academicians from the South Asian region that include Dr. Shankar Prasad Sharma, former Vice Chairman of Nepal’s Planning Commission and former ambassador to the USA, Dasho Karma Ura, President of Centre for Bhutan Studies and GNH Research, Bhutan and senior academic from Sri Lanka, Professor Sumanasiri Liyanage. The discussion was chaired by Professor Santosh Panda, Dean, Faculty of Economics at South Asian University. The panel explored and discussed the areas of economic co-operation and the factors affecting them.

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Published on Tuesday, 10 February 2015

SAU TO HOST FIRST ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF SOUTH ASIAN BIOTECHNOLOGISTS

New Delhi: Faculty of Life Sciences and Biotechnology (FLSB), of the South Asian University (SAU) is organizing  “South-Asian Biotechnology Conference” from 12-14 February 2015. Biotechnologists from various SAARC countries shall participate in this three day event that will be inaugurated by Prof. GP Talwar, the erstwhile Director of the National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi. Participants from SAARC countries will present their research and get first-hand information about the kind of research work being carried out in this part of the world. Besides basic Life Sciences, the Conference will have sessions on Plant and Medical Biotechnology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases.

A special panel discussion entitled “Initiatives to promote collaborative research in the SAARC region” has also been scheduled for the last day of the Conference and will be dedicated to discuss ways and means for enhancing research cooperation and intra-SAARC collaborations on shared problems.

According to Prof. RK Saxena, the Chairman of the Conference and the Vice President of SAU, this conference will mark the first step towards the goal of establishing SAU as a coordinator of intra-SAARC research collaborations in the areas of human health, agriculture and environment. South Asian Biotechnology Conference would hence-forth be an annual event on the calendar of SAU.

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Published on Tuesday, 09 December 2014

SAARC must overcome the legacy of mistrust of the past

New Delhi: Culture, commerce and connectivity can be the building blocks for a better future for the people of South Asia, said Ms Sushma Swaraj, India’s External Affairs Minister.

The Minister was speaking at a SAARC event organised by the South Asian University (SAU) to commemorate the 30th SAARC Charter Day at India International Centre here. The event was well attended by Ambassadors, High Commissioners, Heads of international institutions, SAARC organisations, think tanks and many other dignitaries.

Ms Swaraj said economic growth and social progress are possible only in a peaceful and secure environment. As neighbours we must remain sensitive to each other’s security concerns and neither encourage nor undertake any activity that might be detrimental to the security and welfare of the neighbour, she added.

She also reiterated the remarks made by Prime Minister Modi at the SAARC Summit about cooperation in energy, trade, connectivity and overcoming common challenges.

The South Asian University, by building a culture of understanding and regional consciousness, by nurturing a new class of bright, liberal minds can play a transformative role in this process, said the Minister.

In her welcome address, Dr. Kavita Sharma, the President of SAU said “the South Asian University embodies the idea of regional connectivity in more ways than one and a new generation of South Asians are being groomed who share collective experiences and contribute richly to a shared regional consciousness”. The recently concluded 18th SAARC summit in its Kathmandu Declaration acknowledged the significance of education in the region and the positive contribution of SAU in this regard, she added.

India’s Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, in the eighteenth SAARC Summit, mentioned about the need for the South Asian University to collaborate with at least one university in each member country. Dr. Sharma said, initiatives have been taken and the strategy for the same is being worked out.

A panel discussion moderated by Prof. SD Muni followed where the challenges and opportunities of the regional body were discussed. The panellists include senior journalist and political commentator HK Dua, Professor Amita Batra from the Jawaharlal Nehru University and Prof. Sasanka Perera from the South Asian University.

Dr. Sharma, President SAU also inaugurated an international workshop on Data and Text Analytics attended by participants from all SAARC countries in the afternoon.