On a day that over 5000 freshers were inducted in different courses at the SRM Institute of Science and Technology, parents from different parts of the country were assured that there was no ragging on the campus and their wards were quite safe to pursue their academic studies without worry.
Although SRMIST is ragging-free, it has been decided to form an anti-ragging committee as a confidence building measure, the Registrar Prof N Sethuraman told the aspiring students and their parents at the freshers’ induction programme held at the TP Ganesan Auditorium, believed to be one of the largest of its kind in Asia.
The initial reference to the retrograde practice of ragging was made by SRMIST Vice Chancellor Prof Sandeep Sancheti who spoke among other things about the do’s and don’ts for students while welcoming them. He pointedly said they should not indulge in ragging or abuse of substances reported from some colleges. He also had advice for parents saying they should keep a vigil on their wards as well and adopt a friendly attitude of understanding problems that may be faced by their sons or daughters during their initial years on the campus.
Emphasising that there was a significant 7 per cent investment in R & D in SRMIST, he urged students to make full use of state-of-the-art facilities for research at SRMIST to experiment and innovate as their objective should be to go beyond their standard curriculum to emerge as entrepreneurs and trail blazers. While 75 per cent attendance was necessary to qualify for examinations, he advised freshers to aim for 100 per cent attendance to derive the full benefit of knowledge and guidance from their teachers.