 I feel privileged and honoured to extend my warm welcome to all present here for the celebration of 17th Foundation Day of Krishnakanta Omniburi State of the University. The gene case for today's event is the Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University, Professor Nageshwar Rao, respected keynote speaker of today's Foundation Day lecture, Professor Dr. Bhattacharya Das, Vice-Chancellor of Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Corporate Management, are here amidst along with other dignitaries. I would like to invite all the dignitaries and all present here to kindly rise for the University in them. Thank you. Now, we would like to mark the beginning of the program by the ceremonial lighting of the lamp to mark Saraswati and we are homage to the great scholar Krishnakanta Omniburi. I take the honour of requesting our dignitaries to kindly light the ceremonial lamp. Also, I'd like to request our Honourable Vice-Chancellor Sir, Redistar Sir and Professor Rupendra Nayan Shona Sir kindly to accompany our guest and take part in the lighting of the ceremonial lamp. May I now request our Honourable Vice-Chancellor, Professor Rajendra Prasadans, to kindly welcome the esteemed Chief Guest, Professor Nageshwar Raoji, with a Phulam Kamosa and a bouquet on behalf of the University. I would like to request Dr. Midhu Smitadwara to assist Honourable Vice-Chancellor Sir. In request, our Honourable Vice-Chancellor Sir, to welcome and present Phulam Kamosa and a bouquet on behalf of the University to the distinguished speaker, Professor Rupendra Prasadans. I'd like to request Dr. Midhu Smitadwara to assist Honourable Vice-Chancellor Sir. Now, I'd like to request Professor Rupendra Nayan Shona, former Vice-Chancellor in charge of the University and the Chairperson of 17th Foundation Day Celebration Committee, to kindly felicitate our Honourable Vice-Chancellor, Professor Rajendra Prasadans, with a Phulam Kamosa and a bouquet on behalf of the University. For this, I'd like to request Dr. Smitadwara to assist Professor Shona Sir. Now, I'd like to request Dr. Rajendra Prasadans, the Ganganar of the 17th Foundation Day Celebration Committee, to felicitate the Registrar of the University, Dr. Arup Jyoti Choudhury, with a Phulam Kamosa and a bouquet. For this, I'd like to request Dr. Midhu Smitadwara to assist Dr. Rajendra Prasadans. Now, I'd like to request Professor Pranjikpura, Director Padminath Guhanpura School of Humanities, to felicitate Professor Rupendra Nayan Sharma, with a Phulam Kamosa and a bouquet, and for this, I'd like to request Dr. Preeti Salina Rajkhoa to assist Professor Pranjikpura. Thank you so much. Now, may I request Dr. Arup Jyoti Choudhury, the Registrar of the University, to kindly present a brief about the program of 17th Foundation Day of Krishnakanta Honigoy State of the University to all of us. Honorable Vice Chancellor, the chief guest of today's function, Professor Nageshwara Rao, Vice Chancellor Indira Gandhi, National Open University, New Delhi. The keynote speaker, Professor Devupruta Das, Vice Chancellor Assam Rajep Gandhi, University of Cooperative Management, former Vice-Centrallers, members of the Board of Management, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen present. It's a great pleasure, on my part, to present before you a brief of the event today. It was probably about 16 years back, when the Assamese people were almost busy preparing for their Bogali Vihu delicacies, that the government of Assam taking a leap from the developments elsewhere in the world, as well as in different parts of the country, decided to establish the first ever distance and open learning university in this part of the country. Obviously, when the university was established, one of the fundamental objectives of it was to create an ambience of barrier-free education in this part of the country. At the same time, the university also underlined the need for the enhancement of the gross enrollment ratio. But at the same time, it would be wrong if we underline, if we undermine actually, the actual objective of establishing such an institution, that is of establishing equity, fair play, justice, and without discrimination in the society. It is particularly meant for those sections of the students' community, who are mainly from the underprivileged section of the society, so that they can compete with confidence with the rest who are privileged and fortunate. As you all know, this university is dedicated to the great memory of the great scholar, Krishnakantohandik. The very name associated with the university has strengthened our confidence to work for the underprivileged section of the society. Well, right at the moment, we may have a tiny existence. We may be even ordinary at the moment, but we aspire to be extraordinary with your cooperation and blessings. I hope we will definitely secure your blessings and cooperation, and that will help us to achieve the target of becoming one of the best open and distance learning universities in the country. With this, I conclude and thank you once again. Thank you very much. Thank you so much, sir. I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce our honourable Vice Chancellor, Professor Rajendra Prasad Das, who has joined our university on this day, 11th of October 2022. He has got a vast teaching and administrative experiences, and we are very fortunate to have him to guide us to scale newer heights. As a professor of management, Professor Das, before joining our university, was the senior most pro-Vice Chancellor of Indira Gandhi National Open University for more than three years. Prior to that, he was the Vice Chancellor of Birhampur University, Birhampur Odisha. May I now request our honourable Vice Chancellor, Professor Rajendra Prasad Das, to kindly deliver the welcome entries to the August 30th. Thank you. Good morning, everybody. Our esteemed Chief Guest, Professor Nageshwar Raoji, honourable Vice Chancellor Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi, Professor Debabrata Das, keynote speaker, and the Vice Chancellor of Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management. Our Registrar, Dr. Arup Jyothi Chaudhary, Dr. N. N. Sarma, the convener of the program. The esteemed members of Board of Management, members of Academic Council, respected former Vice Chancellor, Professor Barua and Professor Dekha, respected Madam Rao and Madam Das. Centre in Charges, co-ordinators of Study Centre, distinguished guests, dear learners, all media friends, ladies and gentlemen. It is indeed a great pleasure and privilege and honour for us to have your gracious presence at the 17th Foundation Day celebration of Krishna Khan the Handicke State Open University. I also consider it a great opportunity on my part to extend you all a very warm welcome to this Foundation Day celebration. Our University was established by the Government of Assam by an act of State Legislature in the year 2005. It was dedicated and named after a great Indologist of the country, Professor Krishna Khan the Handicke. I take this opportunity to pay our reach tribute to the great soul. In fact, the vision and mission of our University since its inception is to reach the one raised and provide quality higher education at an affordable cost. We have all deeply committed to it and now making no stone unturned to fulfill our vision and mission. It may be mentioned here that in terms of geographical coverages and locations, we have about 27% of the study centres located at 4 areas, 11% in tea garden areas, 7% in border areas and 2% in field districts. It is indicative of our commitment of the University towards the underprivileged sections of society in the state. It is also very happy to share with our University that our University could succeed to motivate more than 54% female learners in the state to enrol in the master's program during the last five years. It is indeed a remarkable achievement for the University in disseminating higher educational opportunity to the women of the state. During COVID-19 pandemic, the University provided care and learning support to the learners by providing e-mentoring and counseling sessions. Life classes through different online platforms despite many issues related to internet connectivity and poor networking. We address all those issues with a sense of commitment and hard work, though we are small and young, but our University is committed towards its social responsibility. We are providing free education to gel mates in the state, differently-affirmed and transgendered learners. The University also provides learning materials to visually challenged learners in the valley and audio format free of cost. Our University is also offering various academic programs through the YouTube channel of the University. Very active community awareness and educational programs are transmitted throughout the year by University community radio Gantaryap. The LMS learning management system of our University known as E-Vitya helps this open University to play a leading role in terms of online education, content delivery, resource sharing among the educational institutions of the state. Our University has adopted five villages for promotion of education among the youth of those villages in the name of Mother Teresa Social Welfare Mission. The National Education Policy 2020 sets the target of 50% gross enrollment ratio for higher education. The audio is now receiving increasing attention from the new generation of learners as it has policy makers. Our University is now almost prepared in all respect to play a key role in the state to contribute substantially towards improving the existing GR level of 17.3% of the state. In this academic session, with our planned efforts by using various social media platforms, our admission figure has crossed more than 34,000. This is the first time highest enrollment in the 16 years of history of our University. The University is going to launch about 50 new academic programs through seven different schools of the University from the next academic session 2023-24. All the academic programs that have been proposed so far are in line with NEP 2020. Out of 15 new programs, seven are master programs, three are bachelor degree programs, nine are diploma programs, and 31 are certificate programs. Now we are prepared to increase our enrollment to 50,000 in the next academic session. Efforts are on to ensure that every learner should receive SLM within two weeks of their admission. A proactive grievance sale is also constituted to solve the grievances of our learners. I wish to share with August gathering that our Board of Management recently has given us permission to install a full-size bronze statue of the noted endologist Krishna Khanthhandi in the University campus, which will be sponsored by a financial institution. To make the...very soon we are also going to appoint a part-time doctor for the benefit of University employees. To meet the recommendation of NEP, we are also going to lay foundation stone for the residents of Vice Chancellor, registrar, teachers, officers, and non-teaching staff with a guest house and a hostel in the main campus at RANI. Now all the formalities are in the process of completion. To make the best utilization of the unique location of RANI campus, we are also planning to establish one ODL research center at far with the global standard, with the primary focus on promoting distance education among the tribal. In this context, the efforts are already on and the consultation process is started. I wish to play some record that under the dynamic leadership and efforts and intervention of our Honorable Education Minister, Dr. Peguji, we are now very close to resolve the long-fending land ownership issue of this...our capacity campus. Very soon we may get 42 new faculty and non-teaching force from the government. We are now conscious and concerned about the quality with our growing quantity. So our efforts in this direction is to smooth and fair conduct of examination, which just started yesterday. A series of steps have been taken for evaluation and reserve declaration. All these efforts will build the image of the university in the entire north eastern region and the country as a whole. I am confident that with the cooperation and support of our state government and especially the Minister of Education, the vision of the university to reach the unreached with quality and quantity. And our dream to be one of the largest and best open universities in the country will be achieved with the passage of time. Jai Hind.