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IIM Indore to establish a Centre of Excellence receives a grant of Rs. 19.95 Cr from MoHUA
Swachhta Anthem for Ayodhya released on the occasion
Best Faculty and Best Staff Awards announced
Indian Institute of Management Indore (IIM Indore) celebrated its 26th Foundation Day on October 03, 2022. The event was inaugurated by Prof. Himanshu Rai, Director, IIM Indore. Ambassador Vishnu Prakash, Ex Envoy to Canada & South Korea, Foreign Office Spokesman, was the chief guest for the occasion.
The Foundation Day witnessed the grand announcement of the Centre of Excellence at the Institute. Prof. Himanshu Rai mentioned that Indore has set an example of efficient waste management and cleanliness, receiving the Cleanest City Award for six consecutive years. ‘We at IIM Indore aim to remain contextually relevant and contribute to nation building. Thus, to contribute to the Swachh Bharat Mission, we have joined hands with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and have received a grant of Rs. 19.95 crores to establish this Centre of Excellence that focuses on making India garbage free’, he said. He thanked Indore Collector Mr. Manish Singh and Commissioner Ms. Pratibha Pal for their support in the initiative.
He mentioned that the institute has teamed up with five foreign educational partners, namely, the University of Denver, Rutgers University, University of Glasgow, University of Liverpool, and Bocconi University, to offer courses under the CoE. ‘Our CoE will sponsor the ten-day course for political leadership, including mayors and ward councilors, to build their capacities, skills, and sensitivity. The participants will get a chance to attend a 5-day module at IIM Indore, followed by a 5-day module at one of our partner universities’, he said. This module will emphasize strengthening WASH – water, sanitation, and hygiene. ‘We will create material and a repository on the behavioral change in people – help them decide parameters for cleanliness which may be categorized into Platinum, Gold, and Diamond standards – and add value to a commoner’s knowledge, health, hygiene, and lifestyle. IIM Indore will also establish an incubation center with IIT Indore for the youth who wish to start their venture in the sanitation and waste management domain.
Prof. Ganesh Kumar Nidugala, Prof. Shruti Tewari, Prof. Amit Vatsa and Prof. Vaijayanthee Anand, also shared their views about the Centre of Excellence on this occasion. This team of four professors is being led by Prof. Himanshu Rai and will work on various plans and strategies for the CoE.
The congratulatory messages from the foreign partner universities were also screened on this occasion. Prof. Nuran Acur, Professor of Innovation Management, Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow mentioned it is important for universities to conduct training programmes for cleanliness and sanitation awareness and proper administration is imperative. ‘IIM Indore is fulfilling this responsibility through this CoE. It is a pleasure for us to be associated with IIM Indore in this initiative’, she said. Prof. Francesco Bertolini, Sustainability Professor, Bocconi University, also expressed his delight over collaborating with IIM Indore for its CoE. ‘Indore is the cleanest city in India and Italy has the advanced technology for managing waste. Thus, collaborating with IIM Indore will be very fruitful in terms of providing trainings and working on projects that help us achieve various SDGs’, he said. Prof. Erik Garfunkel, Vice President for Global Affairs, Rutgers University, said that clean water and sanitation are basic human rights and the pandemic has made this more important. ‘We look forward to creating training programmes in association with IIM Indore, focused on executive leadership, development, capacity building, community development and strategic planning’, he said.
IIM Indore has been contributing to the welfare of not only Indore and Madhya Pradesh, but also other cities in the nation, including Kanpur and Ayodhya. As a part of helping Ayodhya implement the Swachh Indore plan, a Swachhta Anthem for Ayodhya has been created by IIM Indore. Prof. Himanshu Rai is the male lead for the song, and Prof. Shruti Tewari has co-written the lyrics.
During the Foundation Day celebrations, Prof. Rai, in his address, noted that IIM Indore stands firm on the pillars of its foundation – our values, ethics, and morals. ‘Every passing day is an opportunity to reflect on how far we have come, where we are today, and what we aim for. We are not yet done. As I said, success is never final. There’s always a scope to improve further’, he said. He concluded by encouraging the IIM Indore community to continue to innovate, ideate, and inspire, and together bring a change and a revolution that creates a just and vibrant world for all.
Ambassador Shri Vishnu Prakash congratulated the IIM Indore family for completing 26 years. He especially appreciated and admired the initiatives taken by the institute in terms of women empowerment and the Swachh Bharat Initiative. ‘IIM Indore is a young institute, and the journey has just begun. IIM Indore has a long way to go and establish milestones’, he said. Discussing the changing face of the global and Indian economy, he highlighted how India could collaborate with its neighbors that benefit South Asia. “India has faced two sets of challenges. One is terrorism, and another is global warming. We have been able to handle dire situations, and today we are a nation that has set an example in enhancing and strengthening our sustainability initiatives”, he said. He mentioned that India’s economy was growing at a rate of 7.5 percent for the last 17 years before the pandemic. It slowed down a bit during the pandemic, but then again, we are the fastest-growing economy in the world. “We have the highest FDI, we are soaring with emerging startups and unicorns, and the superpowers are now finding India as a nation to invest in”, he stated. He advised the students to be passionate, punctual, and focused on their goals. “The difference between being successful and failing could be just one minute”, he said.
Every year, the Institute felicitates its teachers with the Best Teacher Award. The parameters for selecting the best teachers included teaching feedback, new courses developed, teaching pedagogy (innovation), and application/ practical orientation. This year, the award was presented to Prof. Bhavin J Shah, Prof. Prabin Kumar Panigrahi, and Prof. Shruti Tewari, who received a citation and a cash award of Rs. 1 Lakh each.
The Best Staff Award was also announced on this occasion. The awardees included Dr. Anjali Lalwani, Mr. Sandeep Kumar Das, Mr. Jitendra Singh Yadav and Mr. Vivek Chinchkhede.
The top five percentile faculty to receive the highest feedback from the students were also felicitated. These include Prof. Manoj Motiani, Prof. Rohit Kapoor, Prof. Srinath Jagannathan, Prof. Shrihari S Sohani, Prof. Amitabh Deo Kodwani and Prof. Bipul Kumar.
Employees associated with IIM Indore for 10 and 20 years were also felicitated on this occasion with the 10/20 Years of Service Awards. These included Prof. Shubhamoy Dey, Prof. Biswanath Swain, Prof. Gaurav Singh Chauhan, Prof. Kajari Mukherjee, Mr. K.V. Sathyanathan, Prof. Madhukar Dayal and Prof. Nagarajan Krishnamurthy.
On this occasion, the top 5 percentile of the PGP, PGPHRM and IPM participants also received their Certificate of Academic Excellence. A total of 30 students received their certificates. IPM Late Adya Prabha Scholarship was awarded to Stuti Khandelwal, IPM 2018, in absentia.
The event concluded with the national anthem.