New campus of Haryana Central University inaugurated

Jant Palli: The new campus of the Central University of Haryana was formally inaugurated today at Jant Palli village in Mahendragarh district.

Haryana Governor Jagannath Paharia inaugurated the new campus where, at its first convocation, 113 students were conferred degrees. Pahadia also awarded gold medals to the outstanding students. Originally, President Pranab Mukherjee was to be the chief guest for the convocation ceremony but could not attend due to "unavoidable circumstances", according to a release by the state government. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, too, was present on the occasion and presented Ph.D degrees to researchers. Speaking during the function, Pahadia lauded the strides made by the university within a short span of time. Since its inception in 2009, the university has expanded its academic programmes in a phased manner. It has acquired a respectable place among the major academic institutions of the state, he said. Pahadia also praised the innovative academic and social outreach initiatives launched by the university. Hooda, for his part, said that the state government was committed to providing access for all to quality higher education. At present there are 36 universities in the state, including 14 private ones, he said. He expressed happiness that the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Haryana is about 27.9 per cent whereas the national average was 20.4 per cent. By 2020, the number of students receiving higher education in the state is expected to more than double, he added.