PASIGHAT, OCT 9:
Arunachal Pradesh University (APU) concluded its month-long Vande Mataram@150 celebrations with a valedictory programme and a two-day national seminar featuring 95 paper presentations in online and offline modes on Friday.
Addressing the valedictory programme, APU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Ashan Riddi stressed the importance of documentation and digitalisation for institutional growth and called for decentralised, participatory administration. He also set a target of enrolling at least 3,000 students at the university.
Riddi congratulated the organising team and appreciated the Department of Mass Communication for hosting the event. Describing Union Minister Kiren Rijiju’s campus visit as a “blessing in disguise”, he said the minister’s firsthand assessment of the university’s infrastructure and requirements would help it present its needs more effectively.
The national seminar brought together scholars, researchers and students to deliberate on diverse subjects, including literature, media, indigenous knowledge, technology, ecology and sustainable development.
The offline sessions covered three broad themes: economics, commerce, mathematics, agriculture and management; science, environment, health, indigenous knowledge and technology; and language, literature, media, history and frontier narratives.
The online sessions featured four themes encompassing Vande Mataram, history, literature, gender and cultural memory; education, pedagogy, law, psychology and nation-building; media, journalism, artificial intelligence, digital technology and frontier identity; and society, ecology, economy, tourism and sustainable development.
Delivering the offline plenary on “Contemporary Poetry, Media and Nation Building”, Dr Arundhati, assistant professor in the Department of Hindi at Satyawati College, University of Delhi, highlighted the role of ethical, people-oriented journalism in upholding democratic values and contributing to nation-building.
Referring to Hindi literary journals such as Hans and Saraswati, she said periodicals had promoted social awareness and national integration by providing space for diverse voices. She added that contemporary poetry and journalism relied on accessible, everyday language to engage the public and encourage critical reflection.
The programme concluded with the distribution of certificates to committee members associated with the celebrations.
