PAU is third best agri varsity

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, July 18

The Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has been adjudged as the third-best agricultural university of India, as per the ranking of agricultural universities and research institutes conducted by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi. Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, Vice-Chancellor, PAU, received a certificate during the ICAR Foundation Day Award Ceremony, held at AP Shinde Hall, NASC Complex, Pusa, New Delhi, on July 16.

The university has been ranked number one among state agricultural universities. The ICAR has initiated ranking of agricultural universities with a larger objective to improve the standard of higher agricultural education in tune with the World University Framework. In all, 57 agricultural universities of India participated in the ranking that included six parameters — student and faculty profile, placement of students, publications in high-ranking journals and citations, patents, technologies commercialised and improvement of genetic traits in crops.

Earlier this year, PAU was ranked the best among the universities of Punjab by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development for its commendable role in teaching, learning and research.

Dr Dhillon congratulated the faculty and the staff of PAU. Lauding them for their dedication and devotion in serving the institution as well as the farming community, he said: “Concerted efforts have enabled PAU to emerge as one of the best agricultural varsities of the country.”

The National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal, and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, have been ranked first and second best, respectively, by ICAR. The Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar; Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore; and GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, have been ranked fourth, seventh and eighth, respectively.

Raising the bar

• The ICAR has initiated ranking of agricultural universities with a larger objective to improve the standard of higher agricultural education in tune with the World University Framework. 
• Earlier this year, PAU was ranked the best among the universities of Punjab by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development for its commendable role in teaching, learning and research