Plans special convocation, honour for 7 personalities

Aarti Kapur

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 18

Seven dignitaries, who have excelled in various fields, will be honoured by Panjab University at a special convocation to be held on the campus in the coming months. The plan regarding the convocation, in which four prominent personalities will be honoured with honorary degrees and three with awards, will be tabled at a meeting of the Syndicate for approval tomorrow.

Sources said Prime Minister Narender Modi was likely to be the chief guest at the convocation. The university authorities were making efforts in this regard.

A five-member committee, headed by PU Senator SS Johal, decided the names of the dignitaries to be awarded at the special convocation.

The names proposed for the honoris causa degree are Murli Manohar Joshi, Dr Narinder Singh Kapany, Prof Gurdev Singh Khush and Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar. Three personalities whose names have been proposed for awards are Anupam Kher, Prof Dalip Kaur Tiwana and Dr Parshotam Dass Gupta.

PU VC Arun Kumar Grover said after approval from the Syndicate and the Senate, the authorities would finalise the chief guest for the event.

Honorary Degree

Dr Murli Manohar Joshi 
His name has been proposed for DLitt (Honoris Causa). He is a politician, a leading member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Member of Parliament for Kanpur. 

Dr Narinder Singh
Kapany: His name has been proposed for DSc (Honoris Causa). He is an India-born American Sikh known as the father of fiber optics.

Prof Gurdev Singh
Khush: His name has been proposed for DSc (Honoris Causa). He is an agronomist and geneticist known for improving the global supply of rice during a time of exponential population growth. 

Justice Jagdish Singh
Khehar: A renowned personality, his name has been proposed for Doctor of Laws (Honoris Causa). He is a Judge of the Supreme Court and an alumnus of Panjab University. 

Award 
Anupam Kher: The actor’s name has been proposed for the Kala Rattan award. He has acted in 500 films and many plays. He has also appeared in acclaimed international films. 

Prof Dalip Kaur Tiwana: Her name has been proposed for the Sahitya Rattan award. She is a novelist and short-story writer of contemporary Punjabi literature. She has won awards, both regional and national, and is a widely translated author.   

Dr Parshotam Dass Gupta: His name has been proposed for Vigyan Rattan. He is serving as the Director, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore.