Karnal: NDRI University conferred 278 degrees

The Dr. D. Sundanaresan Auditorium of the National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI)-Deemed University hosted the 20th convocation of the ICAR. The convocation speech was given by Padma Bhushan recipient RS Paroda, head of the Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS), former Secretary of DARE, and former Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

278 students in all received degrees; 49 studied for a BTech, 127 for a master’s, and 102 for a PhD. Vice-Chancellor and NDRI Director Dheer Singh presided over the event and said that the institution was producing superior breeds of cattle and buffaloes by multiplying premier germplasm using cutting-edge technologies.

Instead of calling on the students to search for work, he urged them to start their own businesses. Singh went on to say that the institution, in addition to offering MTech and PhD degrees in 14 topics and BTech degrees in dairy technology, was playing a significant role in the field of human resource development. 49 of the 85 patents the institution had submitted, he claimed, had been awarded.

Paroda, the chief guest, showered the institution with accolades for its exemplary services in the dairy industry. He praised the institute’s work and said that it had succeeded in rising to the top of all state agricultural institutions for a number of years via relentless efforts. Speaking about nutritional security as a significant concern facing the dairy and agricultural industries, he said that although progress had been made in the area of food security, much work remained in the area of nutritional security.

Paroda placed a strong emphasis on raising each cow’s output. She said that although each animal produced an average of three liters of milk per day, this needed to be increased to ten liters per day since the dairy industry was essential for economic stability. He also emphasized how important it is to have more dairy institutions.

The institution awarded honorary degrees to DVK Prakashrao, managing director of Prakash Foods and Feed Private Limited in Chennai, and KM Bujarbarua, former vice chancellor of Assam Agricultural institution in Jorhat. Priyanka received the gold medal for dairy engineering within the PhD program 2022–2023, Madhulatha C received the silver medal for agricultural extension education, and Elizabeth Thomas received the bronze medal for dairy technology.