Chennai: VIT Chennai celebrated its 13th annual convocation on Saturday with a grand ceremony that honored academic excellence and reaffirmed the institution’s commitment to inclusive education. The event was held on campus and witnessed the conferring of degrees to 6,581 undergraduate, postgraduate, and research scholars.

Dr. Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Minister for Information Technology and Digital Services, Government of Tamil Nadu, graced the occasion as the chief guest. He awarded medals and certificates to rank holders and PhD scholars, while emphasizing the transformative power of education. In his keynote address, Dr. Thiaga Rajan underscored the importance of universal access to education across all social strata, advocating for the integration of humanities and social sciences into technical curricula to foster a more empathetic and socially aware society.

“Education is the foundation of social justice and equity,” he said, recalling Tamil Nadu’s pioneering role in introducing compulsory education over a century ago. He commended VIT Chancellor Dr. G. Viswanathan for his visionary leadership in expanding access to quality education across India.

Shelley Salehin, Deputy High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Chennai, attended as the guest of honour. He highlighted the virtues of character and talent in shaping the future of youth, and praised the collective efforts of students, parents, and faculty in achieving academic milestones.

Dr. G. Viswanathan, Founder and Chancellor of VIT, reiterated the critical role of parental investment in enabling higher education. He called upon both central and state governments to increase funding for higher education to ensure broader access and sustained excellence.

The ceremony was also attended by VIT Vice-Presidents Sankar Viswanathan and Dr. G.V. Selvam, Vice Chancellor Dr. V.S. Kanchana Bhaaskaran, Pro-Vice Chancellors Dr. T. Thyagarajan (VIT Chennai) and Dr. Partha Sharathi Mallick (VIT Vellore), and Registrar Dr. T. Jayabarathi.