Excelsior Correspondent
PAONTA SAHIB, Apr 13: The 2nd annual Convocation of the Indian Institute of Management Sirmaur was held here today.
Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Jai Ram Thakur was chief guest on the occasion and he delivered the Convocation Address. The ceremony was also graced by Ajay S Shriram, Chairman and Senior Managing Director, DCM Shriram Ltd and Chairman of the Board of Governors, IIM Sirmaur, who delivered the welcome address and awarded Degrees to the graduating students.
This is the first batch of students who received the MBA degree instead of the Post Graduate Diploma in Management. The decision to award degrees instead of diplomas was taken earlier this year as per the provisions of the IIM Act 2017.
In all, 35 students were awarded Degrees. PadmanavAdhikari received Chairman’s Gold Medal for being the topper of the batch. Director’s Gold Medal was awarded to Lalatendu Panda for ranking second in order of merit in absentia. In addition, Soumyadeep Das was presented with Director’s Special Recognition Award for being the “Best All Rounder” and Arushi Singh was awarded Director’s Special Recognition Award for being the “First and Only Girl Student” in her batch.
In his Convocation address, the Chief Minister underscored the significance of an institute of national importance such as IIM Sirmaur for Himachal Pradesh. He assured the full support of his Government toward IIM Sirmaur, especially in regard to the development of its permanent campus at DhaulaKuan. He urged the graduating batch to remember their educational roots in the district of Sirmaur and contribute toward the betterment of the State of Himachal Pradesh in any way they can in the future.
In his welcome address, Ajay S Shriram acknowledged the immense contribution and concerted effort required by all stakeholders to build a world renowned institution. Speaking about the upcoming permanent campus of IIM Sirmaur in DhaulaKuan, he said that close coordination with a large number of agencies is required to build a world-class futuristic campus that aims to preserve the essence of Himachal Pradesh.
Addressing the gathering, Professor (Dr) Neelu Rohmetra, Director IIM Sirmaur, spoke about the achievements and progress of the institute over the past year. She stated that IIM Sirmaur aims at uncompromising excellence in teaching and research, freedom of authentic expression and exchange of ideas. “As a young institution, we are uniquely positioned to bring about changes in our courses to reflect the evolving needs of the industry so that our teaching and research does not occur in silos but is rather oriented toward creating successful and well-integrated management professionals for the future. IIM,” she said.