Need to have ‘happiness centres’ in varsities to promote mental well-being of students: UP Governor

While addressing the teachers, students and other attendants at the convocation for the 2019-20 academic session, she said, “The students should be filled with self confidence and believe in positive thinking. They should not believe in negative thinking and work honestly.”

Highlighting that students these days are better in embracing technology than the teachers, the Governor said, “Why don’t teachers take help from such students in technology and include them in committees?”

She also stressed that there should be a “happiness centre” in universities and colleges of the state, where students can spend some time and share their positive or negative views with other students. Even teachers should also visit these centre and discuss with the students.

The Governor stressed on the cleaning of Yamuna river and asked the university administration and others to visit the ghats once in a month to clean the area and plant saplings, so that a good message can be given to the tourists visiting the city.

She asked the university administration why there were pending degrees in the university for the past three to four years. The authorities were ordered to provide the degree certificates to the students for free by making use of the Centre’s DigiLocker and upload it there.

The Governor also highlighted the issue of fake degrees. She said, “We should take a pledge that there should be no fake degrees at all in future.

She also favoured transparency in appointments and promotions at the universities. “Committees are constituted to avoid irregularities and the person signing on it last should be held responsible and no one guilty should be spared,” said Patel.

Appreciating women self help groups in her home state of Gujarat, she said, “We should have encouraged more such SHGs of women in Uttar Pradesh and work towards their betterment.”

Patel added that these days rural women are also taking advantage of online resources and doing business there. “Universities should adopt at least five villages and educate gram pradhans about the policies of the state and central government,” she added.

During the convocation, 109 medals were accorded to meritorious students of the university. Of these, 95 were gold medallists and 14 silver medal winners.

Shivani Singh, a student of final year MBBS in Sarojini Naidu Medical College in Agra, was presented 13 medals. Singh was accorded 12 gold and one silver medal on the occasion.

Talking to PTI, she said, “I was so happy after receiving the medals. I got full support from my parents, brothers and friends to achieve this feat.”

“Now, I want to continue my post-graduation and become a surgeon. Since my childhood, I have had a dream to become a doctor and mainly a surgeon,” she added.

Meanwhile, student activists of the Samajwadi Chhatra Sabha and National Students Union of India (NSUI) were detained by Agra police as they tried to protest against alleged irregularities in the university.