IIM makes it big, 297 students get degrees

Our Correspondent

Nahan, April 6

The eighth convocation of IIM-Sirmaur was held at its permanent campus in Dhaula Kuan. Pushp Kumar Joshi, Chairman & Managing Director, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), was the chief guest. The chairperson of Board of Governors (BoG), Ajay S Shriram, presided over the ceremony.

The ceremony started with the academic procession of the largest-ever batch of IIM-Sirmaur entering the venue. After declaring the convocation open, Ajay Sriram addressed the audience comprising students, faculty members, dignitaries from the industry, parents and other key stakeholders of the IIM-Sirmaur fraternity. In the address, he highlighted several achievements of IIM-Sirmaur. Specifically, he had discussed how organising the convocation in the permanent campus was ‘momentous’. He appreciated the contribution of the Director, members of the Board of Governors, and other key stakeholders in the growth of the institute.

He said IIM-Sirmaur would go on to be the most picturesque and environmentally sustainable campus in the country. He expressed his confidence that the next academic year would commence in the permanent campus. Shriram also shared his insights on the significant trends in the global economy and India’s rapidly changing and supportive regulatory environment in which prominent sectors, including chip, defence, and mining, are growing.

Soul-searching

We tend to run on a treadmill, but we can’t expect to move forward on it. After a period, there would be a phase of soul-searching for you. —Pushp Kumar Joshi, MD, HPCL

Addressing the gathering, Professor Prafulla Y Agnihotri, Director, IIM-Sirmaur, presented the institute’s report on the occasion. He presented a snapshot of the milestones achieved by faculty, staff and students in the last academic year. He shared that 85 per cent of the construction of the permanent campus is complete. The institute currently hosts 39 full-time and two adjunct faculty, doctorates from IIMs, IITs and prominent international institutes. In the last year, 10 faculty and 30 staff members joined the team from diverse backgrounds. Furthermore, it had also set up various MoUs with universities in France, Mauritus and Germany. In the coming year, it is expected that some of the second-year students will be taking courses from these locations as a part of their academic requirements. Further, strengthening ties with the industry, management development programmes were conducted with seven organisations in the last academic year, including IOCL, HPCL, Healthcare Pharmaceutical, Steelmint, I-Metro, Technical Education Department of Himachal Pradesh and the National Stock Exchange.

He informed that the institute had completed 100 per cent summer placements this year, including international placements in organisations from countries like Russia, UAE and Mauritius. He reminded students that they carry responsibility on their shoulders to maintain the dignity and honour of their education, and they should be mindful of their responsibility towards society.

Shriram awarded MBA degrees to the graduating students. The families of graduating students were also present on the occasion.

A total of 297 students graduated. 246 students were conferred the degree of Master of Business Administration (MBA) and 51 students were conferred the Master of Business Administration in Tourism and Hospitality Management (MBA T&HM). Among the graduating students, there are eighty female students. Dharshini P, received Chairman’s Gold Medal for the MBA and the Director’s Medal was awarded to Haris Subramanian S. Rahul Goyal received the award for the best all-round performance while Dharshini P and Chetanya Nanda received gold medals as toppers in the finance and marketing areas respectively. Jatin Sharma, received the gold medal for the best academic performance in MBA in the tourism and hospitality programme.

Pushp Kumar Joshi delivered the graduation commencement (convocation) address. He congratulated the students at this significant milestone as they transition from the institute to the outside world. Emphasising the importance of introspection, he emphasised that life is bigger than the jobs that we do.

He highlighted the importance of skills beyond Intelligence Quotient (IQ) — Emotional Quotient (EQ) and Spiritual Quotient (SQ) — that would help students navigate through decisions in life. He concluded by narrating the story of three questions that highlight the importance of being in the present.

Celebrations in store

A total of 297 students graduated, of whom, 246 were conferred the degree of MBA and 51 MBA in Tourism and Hospitality Management (HM).

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