JNU committed to freedom of thought, critical thinking: VC

Jawaharlal Nehru University Vice-Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar today asserted that the varsity is committed to encouraging critical thinking and freedom of thought among its students and faculty.

He was speaking at the second convocation of the varsity, which was held almost 46 years after the first. VK Saraswat, the Chancellor of JNU and Niti Aayog member, was the chief guest.

The convocation was held at the AICTE auditorium here, even as some students and teachers questioned the move to organise the event outside the campus.

Saraswat delivered the convocation address and conferred the doctoral degrees on the graduands. He congratulated all the graduands and called them the "future of the country" and advised them to use their capabilities to serve the society and take the nation forward.

"JNU is generally perceived as a training ground for intellectual politicians and for meaningful life in the Indian bureaucracy as much as beginning of life in research and academics. It has produced some of the finest mindsets, politicians and bureaucrats and researchers like Muzaffar Alam, Alok Bhattacharya, S Jaishankar, Nirmala Sitharaman, Sitaram Yechury and so on," Saraswat said.

He told the students that "service to society is more important as compared to your personal achievements" and he urged them to "be humble" in learning from their colleagues.

He also encouraged the students to inculcate an "Olympian spirit" of competitiveness and said, "Let us all live for the growth of our nation and the welfare of our countrymen."