A total of 16,418 learners were conferred degree and diplomas by Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University (KKHSOU) during its fourth convocation in Guwahati.
Out of these, 482 learners received their degrees and diplomas in person at the convocation organized on Sunday.
Among them, 20 learners received their PhD degrees, 11 received MPhil degrees, 93 received MA degrees, 18 received MBA degrees, 12 received MCA degrees, 14 received MSW degrees and one learner received MSc lT degree.
A total of 258 learners received BA degrees, 17 received BCom degrees, 17 received BCA degrees, 5 received BMC degrees and one learner received BBA degree.
A total of 15 learners received PG diplomas.
Apart from these regular learners, the University also conferred Honorary D.Litt and PhD degrees to four stalwarts in various fields for their contribution towards the society.
While eminent scholar and former Head of the Department of English, Gauhati University, Prof. Ranjit Kumar Dev Goswami was awarded Honorary D.Litt degree, the Vice Chairman of State Innovation and Transformation Aayog (SITA), Dipak Kumar Borthakur, eminent litterateur Surath Narzary known for his widely acclaimed translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s Gitanjali into the Bodo language and internationally acclaimed film personality Adil Hussain were conferred Honorary PhD degrees.
Open & Distance Education accounts for about 11% of the total enrolment in Indian higher education.
The initiative launched by the Government of lndia, ‘Bharat Padhe Online’ has laid down a solid foundation all across the nation for sharing knowledge amidst challenges posed by Covid19.
“As digital and technology-enabled education present great opportunities for a country like lndia, in the changing context of the present century, it is high time for the universities to cater to the needs of diverse and young human resources to harness the demographic dividend,” said the Vice Chancellor of lndira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and eminent educationist Prof. Nageshwar Rao.
Taking part as the chief guest in the fourth convocation of Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University (KKHSOU) on Sunday in Guwahati, Prof. Rao praised the University for embracing Information Communication Technology in transforming teaching-learning eco-system with adoption of innovations.
Delivering the welcome address, the Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof Kandarpa Das said Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University (KKHSOU) was established in 2006 by the Assam government with an objective to provide an opportunity of quality higher education to those, who for some reasons or others, were hitherto, left out from the ambit of higher education.
With the motto ‘Education beyond Barriers’, the University has been successfully delivering quality higher education, particularly among the disadvantaged and marginalised sections of the society through Distance and Open Mode.
It is the only State Open University in the entire Northeast lndia.
The University has been providing strategic support services to its learners located in the remote and inaccessible areas of the state through a network of over 300 Learners Support Centres.
Out of these, 27 % centres are located in char areas, 11% in tea garden areas, 7% in border areas and 2% in hills districts, the Vice Chancellor said.
Prof Das said close to 50% of the total learners of the University belong to the disadvantaged and marginalised communities while more than 40% of them are women.
The University provides free education to jail inmates, differentially-abled and transgender learners.
“The University provides learning materials to the visually challenged learners in Braille and audio format. The University currently offers 22 academic programmes in graduate and post-graduate levels. The University has been able to empower more than three lakh learners since inception,” KKHSOU said in a statement.