From Supercomputers to Supreme Court: PU's Star-Studded Honoris Causa Awards

Panjab University (PU) Vice Chancellor Renu Vig reviewed the preparations of the convocation at a meeting with senior PU officers and Chairpersons of various committees.

Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria will preside over and address the convocation.

Supercomputing pioneer and the architect of India’s first supercomputer, PARAM, Dr Vijay P Bhatkar, eminent physicist Prof K N Pathak, former Supreme Court judge Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and acclaimed writer Dr Amitav Ghosh will receive honorary Honoris Causa Degrees on the occasion.

Founder of Zoho Corporation and Padma Shri awardee Dr Sridhar Vembu, chemist Prof Pradeep Thalappil, Olympic medallist in shooting and PU alumnus Sarabjot Singh and acclaimed poet, philosopher and playwright Amarjit Grewal will receive the Udyog Ratna, Vigyan Ratna, Khel Ratna and Sahitya Ratna awards respectively.

Padma Bhushan awardee Dr Vijay P Bhatkar will receive the Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) for his work in national supercomputing, multilingual computing and digital literacy.

He is one of India’s most distinguished computer scientists and institution builders, and the founding Director of C DAC. He has made pioneering contributions to digital inclusion through various initiatives.

Prof K N Pathak, former Vice-Chancellor of Panjab University, is being recognised with the Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) for his contributions to condensed matter physics and his leadership in establishing key centres at the University.

He has published 140 research papers, supervised 13 doctoral theses and is a Fellow of several national and international academies. Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel will be conferred the Doctor of Laws (Honoris Causa) for his contributions to constitutional justice and environmental jurisprudence.

A former judge of the Supreme Court and former Chairperson of the National Green Tribunal, he has served the judiciary for more than two decades. Dr Amitav Ghosh, Jnanpith award-winning novelist and public intellectual, will receive the Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa).

His work spans fiction and non-fiction, engaging with themes of identity, migration, history and climate change, and has earned major international recognition. He is a recipient of the Padma Shri.

The founder of Zoho Corporation, one of India’s most respected global software enterprises and among the country’s earliest bootstrapped unicorns, Dr Sridhar Vembu, has been selected for the Udyog Ratna for his leadership in the technology sector and his role in decentralising software development to rural India through Zoho Schools.

He is a Padma Shri awardee. The Vigyan Ratna will be awarded to leading Indian chemist Prof Pradeep Thalappil, who is the Deepak Parekh Chair Professor at IIT Madras. He is a Padma Shri recipient whose pioneering work in nanochemistry led to globally recognised drinking water purification technologies and significant technological translation.

Olympic medallist Sarabjot Singh will receive the Khel Ratna for his achievements in the 10 metre air pistol event, with medals at the World Championships, Asian Games and the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Writer and philosopher Amarjit Grewal has been chosen for the Sahitya Ratna. His bilingual work spans poetry, plays and critical theory, exploring language, ethics and civilisational thought.

- IANS