NIIT Univ highlights many dimensions of Peace at the Eighth Annual Lecture

'The Greenest Campus in India' fosters all-round development of young minds to create leaders who will strive for a better tomorrow

Neemrana, November 21, 2016: Established with a vision to bring about innovation in higher education and learning in emerging areas of the knowledge society, the not-for-profit NIIT University (NU) today hosted the 8th Annual Lecture by Dr Karan Singh, Chairperson NU and Hon'ble Member of Parliament. Dr Singh spoke on 'Many Dimensions of Peace' at the annual event held at NU campus, Neemrana.

On the occasion of the 8th Annual Lecture at NU, scholars and thought leaders congregated to deliberate upon the "Many Dimensions of Peace" and a holistic approach to education to help build a peaceful society. Despite astounding progress in many fields, in the twentieth century we also experienced the worst acts of terrorism, wars and social turbulence. Hence, it is important for higher educational institutions to help create holistic human beings who can nurture peace and can chart the course of progress in harmony with nature.

Dr Karan Singh, Chairperson NU and Hon'ble Member of Parliament congratulated the founders and the team on the successful completion of seven years of excellence in education. He also talked about how higher education should have a deep connect with life, cultural tradition and the environment. Dr Singh also congratulated NU for establishing a new model in higher education that provides a seamless learning environment to foster holistic development and critical thinking among students. He appreciated the sustainable green campus and various initiatives that NU has undertaken to facilitate ecological resurrection and contain ecological degradation of its surrounding areas.

Deeper connect with nature can help us understand ourselves and our surroundings and create thinking individuals who are at peace with themselves and the external environment. Designed to integrate with nature, NU is well poised towards meeting the emerging needs of the knowledge economy through its focus on building strong industry linkages and a research oriented approach.

Mr Rajendra S Pawar, Founder, NU and Chairman, NIIT Limited said, "In our quest for progress we often ignore 'inner peace' that leads to internal and external strife. NU is our vision to create a role model in holistic learning, research, innovation and sustainability to contribute meaningfully towards building a better tomorrow. At NU, it is our belief that nature plays an important role in fostering the spirit of peace for creating well-rounded professionals. We have therefore taken utmost care to design a campus that is one with nature."

NU marks a unique initiative where a campus is established on a comprehensive long-term masterplan keeping environmental considerations at the centre. The challenge was to set up a fully modern University without disturbing the natural surroundings. Hence, carefully and painstakingly the master plan was drafted over two and a half years, to design a campus that would not only add to the beauty of its surroundings, but also not detract from it. Thus, was built the green NU Neemrana.

Dr VS Rao, President, NU, said, "NU believes in a new model of higher education that fosters critical thinking, innovation and research centric approach and oneness with nature to shape individual who can work towards sustainable development. It has been a continuous endeavor at NU to set global standards and encourage Research and Innovation in higher education. In fact, innovation is a way of life at NU and this has encouraged our students to come up with winning entrepreneurship ideas. The university promotes and introduces young minds to new vistas of knowledge, and has encouraged them to think critically and apply that knowledge to everyday life."

The importance of fostering and nurturing the spirit of entrepreneurship was also discussed extensively at the Annual Lecture. With a focus on innovation and research-driven approach to education, NU is emerging as the hot-bed of entrepreneurship. Aligning with the emerging trend in the start-up sector NU is promoting entrepreneurship amongst its students and currently there are 12 active startups in the campus. These startups are based on innovative ideas like - a smart network health monitoring tool; a dedicated one stop solution for pet care services; NU-Window; First Move Technologies; AT-Lead; Food tech; My Geo Info and a peer learning site, to name a few.

True to its core principles of offering industry-linked, research-driven, technology-based and seamless education, NU offers a unique curriculum that aims to shape young minds to play meaningful roles in today's knowledge economy and promote entrepreneurship. The University offers Industry-linked courses like Integrated MBA Program in Business Analytics in collaboration with WNS, MTech (GIS) in collaboration with ESRI, MBA (Finance & Banking) in partnership with ICICI Bank, and MTech (Educational Technology) in collaboration with leading institutions in the country. The University is also building research capabilities in areas such as Biotechnology, Mobile Healthcare, Cognitive Radio, Educational Technology, and Next-generation Networks.

With a view to create graduates who are aligned to the needs of knowledge economy, NU offers a unique 6-month industry internship programme that has been designed to integrate academic pursuits with practical knowledge and experience. This programme gives every student at NU an opportunity to meaningfully engage with leading corporate houses, thus making industry-linkage an intrinsic part of its academic curriculum.

Recently, NU's 6th Convocation ceremony was hosted at the University campus. Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO NITI Aayog, handed over degree certificates to 380 students for successful completion of various programmes at NU. The top five students received the Dr Karan Singh Gold Medal 2016 and one of the students was awarded with the Ram Rajindra Malhotra Medal 2016 for exemplary performances in their respective fields. The students have been successfully placed in leading corporates across India like Amazon, IBM, PwC, Reliance Jio, Airtel, Just Dial, Cognizant Technologies, MakeMyTrip, Grofers, and Shopclues.

NU has been acknowledged as the "Best University in use of Technology in Teaching-Learning Practices" by industry association Assocham. NU has also been recognized as the Greenest University at Clean & Green India Awards 2016.

About NU

Set up with the vision of being the leading center of innovation and learning in emerging areas of the Knowledge Society, the not-for-profit NU is dedicated to building great careers and ensuring excellent job opportunities to all its students. It has been developed as an institution of excellence to provide exceptional education based on the four core principles that make learning Industry-linked, Technology-based, Research-driven and Seamless.

NU provides BTech programme (4 years) & the BTech - MTech Integrated dual degree programme (5 years) in Computer Science, Electronics and Communication Engineering and Biotechnology. The students engage in internships at prestigious organizations. BTech students also get the opportunity of a 6-month work experience before they graduate. NU offers a 2-year MTech programme in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Educational Technology (ET). The University also offers a 2-year full-time MBA programme with options to specialize in areas like Marketing, Finance, HR, Digital Marketing, Business Analytics, Banking and Banking Technology. NU offers exclusive Industry Linked programmes at the master's level including, MBA (Business Analytics) with Industry leader WNS and M Tech (Cyber Security) in collaboration with PwC.

With a focus on innovation and a research-driven approach to education, NU is beginning to emerge as the hot-bed of entrepreneurship. The university provides an enabling platform for students to innovate ideas for their own startups, under the guidance of expert faculty. These startups are based on innovative ideas like - a smart network health monitoring tool; a dedicated one-stop solution for pet care services; NU-Window; First Move Technologies; AT-Lead; Food tech; My Geo Info, Astra and a peer learning site, to name a few.

The University has entered into a partnership with Autodesk to promote 'Design Thinking' as a course across all disciplines of BTech Programs. NU has a 'Microsoft Innovation Centre' on campus that features the best of equipment, the latest technology & expert guidance that fosters an environment of learning & entrepreneurship on campus. The Asian Lenses Forum has been set up at NU to sensitize the younger generation and to create a sense of pride in Asian/Indian heritage, culture, history and values amongst youth. The forum acts as a launching pad for the faculty and student bodies of NU to undertake research and disseminate knowledge about role, achievements and centrality of Asia in the rapidly changing world.

Vibrant social and recreational activities form the heart of Campus Life at NU, with a host of student activities interspersed along the central walking spine. The Campus provides students a wide array of sports activities like tennis, badminton, football, basketball, volleyball, gymnastic and a golf-driving range. Furnished student hostels make life comfortable for students. Temperatures are maintained at the Campus all year around using an energy-efficient, geothermal cooling system, with minimal carbon footprint.

NU is notified by the Government of Rajasthan u/a 5 of 2010 and covered u/s 2(f) of UGC Act.
For more information, please visit: www.niituniversity.in