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Journalism of Courage
Mumbai University 8220;should have the ambition to be among the top 100 universities in the world8221;, said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today while addressing the concluding session of the university8217;s 150th year celebrations.
8220;Like the great universities of ancient India 8212; Nalanda, Takshasila and Nagarjuna 8212; Mumbai University has played an important role in the spread of knowledge and learning. No wonder it is rated among the top 500 universities in the world and I venture to suggest that this is not good enough,8221; Singh said.
Highlighting the contribution of the university, the Prime Minister said in his own discipline of economics, the university has left a 8220;lasting imprint8221; through the works of economists such as Prof C N Vakil, Prof P R Brahmananda, Prof D T Lakdawala and Prof M L Dantwala. While the PM stressed on the need to revamp higher education and focus on establishing international standards of excellence, Mumbai University Vice-Chancellor Vijay Khole said the time had come to look offshore and establish campuses abroad and 8220;embrace required global dimensions8221;.
Endorsing the university8217;s vision to establish a good industry-academia linkage, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said the national oil companies of India will 8220;sponsor an endowment chair on petroleum and research fellowships in the oil sector and hydrocarbon8221; as an initial beginning.
8220;Mumbai University must expand its geographical spread and my plea to the state Government is to allot plots for educational purposes and, more importantly, such plots should not be diverted for other purposes,8221; said Deora.
State Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said the greatest challenge that universities face now is to enhance the employability of students in each faculty.
Seconded Maharashtra Governor and University Chancellor S M Krishna: 8220;The state alone has a four million population who are educated yet unemployed and the number is probably 10 times higher for the country. This highlights the severe shortage of skilled manpower.8221;
