NSS Unit, Nirma University and Students Welfare Board jointly organised the “Fit Nirma University Campaign” during Sep 11-21, 2020 under the banner of Fit India Freedom Run. A total of 121 students, faculty and staff members participated in the campaign following the government’s COVID-19 guidelines. Participants recorded their details on a link and uploaded a one-minute video of their activity. The purpose behind this campaign was to encourage everyone to be healthy, and get freedom from diseases like obesity, laziness, stress, anxiety, etc.
Amidst the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in the country, Nirma University celebrated the 74th Independence Day on Aug 15, 2020 abiding by the COVID-19 rules laid down by the Government of India. The university celebrated the day with a small group comprising the Director General, Executive Registrar and Head of Institutes. The event was hosted by Institute of Commerce, Nirma University wherein Dr Anup K Singh, Director General, was the Chief Guest.
Panel Discussion on Assuring Quality in Higher Education
An online Panel Discussion on the theme ?Assuring Quality in Higher Education? was hosted by Nirma University on Sep 29, 2020. The panelists invited for the discussion included Dr Anup K Singh, Director General, Nirma University, Ahmedabad; Dr Bhagwati Prakash Sharma, Vice-Chancellor, Gautam Buddha University, Greater Noida; Dr Shailendra Singh, Director, Indian Institute of Management, Ranchi; and Dr Nilay Yajnik, Provost, Navrachana University, Vadodara. Dr Rajesh K Jain (Professor, Institute of Management, Nirma University) and Dr Udai L Paliwal (Dean, Institute of Commerce, Nirma University) were the hosts and moderators of the panel discussion. The panelists presented their views on aspects such as Curriculum design and pedagogy; Curriculum delivery and assessments; University-Industry linkages; Quality research and publications, Quality support services, Accreditation and rankings etc. and deliberated on the questions asked by the attendees. The discussion was attended by 268 participants including faculty members, researchers, experts and students of various Universities and Institutes across India.
Webinar on Future of Higher Education in India
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted almost all the sectors of the economy, including the education sector. Amid the pandemic, the recently approved New Education Policy 2020 outlines the vision of India?s Education System and guides the future of the education system in India. In the light of the current developments in the education sector, the alumni association of Institute of Commerce, Nirma University organised a webinar on the theme ?Future of Higher Education in India? on Sep 18, 2020. Mr Alok Mishra, Director, Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), NITI Aayog, was the keynote speaker. Speaking on the disruption in higher education due to COVID-19, Mr Mishra emphasised on the need for innovation in the field of online platforms available for teaching and learning. He said that the implementation of the New Education Policy would provide flexibility to the students and thus called for the requirement of upgradation of the quality of teaching and learning in higher educational institutions.
Webinar on Why 5G matters for Your Career
The Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering organised a webinar on ?Why 5G matters for your career?? by Dr Rikin Thakker, University of Maryland, USA during Sep 2020. Dr Thakker is an alumnus of the Institute of Technology, Nirma University. He is considered to be the world?s top 5G expert and has nearly 20 years of experience in the field of cellular and wireless communications. More than 135 students and faculty members attended the webinar.
Webinar on Breast Cancer Awareness
Women Development Cell (WDC) at Nirma University in collaboration with Institute of Architecture and Planning hosted a webinar on ?Breast Cancer Awareness? for women on Oct 16, 2020 conducted by Dr Sudha Yadav. Dr Sudha has served as a Dean and Professor and Head of Community Medicine at Government Medical Colleges of Gujarat. She is actively engaged in training women on breast self-examination and champions the cause.
Silver Jubilee @ ITNU
Institute of Technology, Nirma University celebrated its Silver Jubilee Anniversary to commemorate 25 years of excellence in the field of education and research. A year-long silver jubilee celebration culminated in the online presence of Honourable Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Vijaybhai Rupani as the Chief Guest on Oct 3, 2020. More than 5000 members of the Nirma family were present for the online celebrations. Dr Karsanbhai K Patel, President; Shri K K Patel, Vice President; Dr Anup K Singh, Director General of Nirma University; and Dr R N Patel (I/c) Director of Institute of Technology felicitated the founding members on this occasion. The Chief Minister released the ?Silver Jubilee Souvenir? online.
Raas Garba
Owing to the pandemic, this year the Raas Garba event was organised on the lines of ?perform the garba from home? during Oct 17-24, 2020. The competition was held in two categories: Students and, faculty/staff. In the Student category, first position was secured by Yatri Patel, Institute of Commerce followed by Aangi Samirbhai Shah, Institute of Technology; and Rushil Bhargavkumar Thakkar, Institute of Commerce. In the Faculty/staff category, Dr Shital Butani, Institute of Pharmacy secured the first position; Ms Jigna Patel, Institute of Technology secured the second position; and Mr Rohit R Patel, Institute of Pharmacy secured the third position. The first three winners in both the categories were awarded a prize money of Rs 2000, Rs 1500 and Rs 1000 respectively.
Plantation Drive
On the occasion of NSS Day and the 151st Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the NSS Unit and Students Welfare Board, Nirma University organised a Plantation Drive from Sep 24 to Oct 2, 2020. As a part of the campaign, members of the Nirma University planted a tree or sapling in their homes and nearby locality.
Essay Writing Competition
Students Welfare Board in collaboration with NSS unit of Nirma University organised an Essay Writing Competition for students of Nirma University on the topic ?Mahatma Gandhi: His Ideologies of Peace, Non-Violence and Love? as part of 151st Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on Oct 2, 2020. A total of 90 students from the constituent institutes participated in the competition. The first position was secured by Mehak Dahiya, Institute of Management; second position by Snigdha Dubey, Institute of Commerce; and third position by Joshi Yashvi Vinay, Institute of Science. Winners received prize money of Rs 1000, Rs 700, and Rs 500 respectively.
World Habitat Day Celebration
Institute of Architecture and Planning celebrated the World Habitat Day on Oct 5, 2020 by organising a webinar on ?Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy in Human Settlements? by Ms Zeenat Niazi, Vice President, Development Alternative Group, India. Her work spread over three decades has focused on sustainable housing and habitat in human settlements, community-based approaches to climate and disaster resilience and support to national, sub-national and local government in mainstreaming integrated planning for achieving Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement in India.
Entrepreneurship in Pharmaceutical Industry
Centre for Entrepreneurship, Nirma University organised an expert session on ?Entrepreneurship in Pharmaceutical Industry? on Nov 30, 2020 with Mr Ankur Agarwal, Founder of Medkart Pharmacy as the resource person. The session was attended by more than 130 students of Institute of Pharmacy along with faculty members. With the aim of making students aware of the future of generic medicines, the session focused on the entrepreneurial side of a startup: its struggles, and much more! Students brainstormed on the Pharmacy business and Entrepreneurship in general.
Constitution Day Celebration
As part of the celebration of Constitution Day on Nov 26, 2020 online activities were conducted by the Institute of Law, Institute of Architecture and Planning, and Department of Design, Nirma University. Participants were informed about the fundamental rights and duties of the citizens of India and the basic foundational principles of our constitution through the various activities. Further, the faculty, staff, students and NSS volunteers read the Preamble of the Constitution of India and took a pledge as citizens of India to responsibly participate in the making of a civilised society.
Anvesh
Institute of Management organised its 16th Annual Doctoral Conference in Management – ANVESH during November 26-27, 2020. The Chief Guest for the inaugural ceremony Dr Janat Shah, Director, IIM Udaipur spoke about creating a research ecosystem in an institute and inspire the researchers at the early stage of academics to aim high in life and be focused in their research. The Presidential address was delivered by Dr Anup K Singh, Director General, Nirma University where he drew attention to the opportunities created for researchers in the New Education Policy. He highlighted the importance of having a strong theoretical background in the area of expertise. Dr M Mallikarjun, Director, Institute of Management, Nirma University talked about the genesis of Anvesh. During the two-day event, 63 presentations were made by research scholars in 10 session tracks. It also featured keynote addresses and 2 plenary sessions by experts from the Management domain. The event also had a Research Workshop on ?The Art of Writing a PhD Thesis?.
10th Annual International Conference on Quality Management
Institute of Management in collaboration with the American Society for Quality (ASQ) Ahmedabad Local Member Community (LMC) organised the 10th Annual International Conference on Quality Management on November 27-28, 2020 on the theme ?Project Atmanirbhar: World Class Quality for Self-Reliance?. The conference was organised with the association partnerships of Vadodara Innovation Council, Rajkot Management Association, Project Management Institute (PMI) – Gujarat Chapter, and Auto Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA). Dr Joerg Dehmer, Global Quality Head, Bosch Rexroth AG, Germany was the chief guest. Prof Prem Vrat, Chairman, BoG, IIT Dhanbad delivered the keynote address. Mr Suresh Lulla, Founder, Mentor, QIMPRO; and Mr Anindya Sarangi, Director, ASQ South Asia were the guest of honour. The second day of the conference witnessed Panel discussion on the theme ?Role of Quality to make India Self Reliant?. Panelists included Mr Jagdish Shukla, CEO, Servilink Systems Ltd; Mr Sanjay K Jain, President-India Amneal Pharmaceuticals; Mr Brijesh Shah, Delivery Head, SPEC India and VP, PMI; Mr Chetan Kothari, Sr Lawyer, Chairman, RMA; Mr Sachin Garg, Regional Director, ASQ; and Dr Rajesh K Jain, Professor, Nirma University (moderator). Mr C V Raman, Sr Executive Director, Member of the Executive Board (Engineering, Quality Assurance & Supply Chain), Maruti Suzuki India Ltd was the chief guest at the valedictory event. The conference was attended by more than 298 participants on the first day and 269 participants on the second day including executives from industry and students from India and abroad.
Webinar on Strategies for Managing Personal Finance
Centre for Corporate Law Studies, Institute of Law in association with Securities and Exchange Board of India and Association of Mutual Funds in India organised a National Webinar on ?Strategies for Managing Personal Finance including Mutual Funds? during and after COVID-19? on Dec 21, 2020. The speakers for the session were Shri Surya Kant Sharma, Senior Consultant-North India, AMFI; Shri Deb Bhattacharjee, Assistant General Manager, SEBI; and Shri Nitin Joshi, Vice President, NSDL E-Governance Infra Ltd.
Design Talks
Centre of Excellence, Nirma University and Binghamton University Online Monthly Speaker Series
Following lectures were held under these series: