Nalanda University vows 'waste-free' campus !!

The Nalanda University declared its campus "waste-free" on Tuesday, which was World Environment Day .

Under the waste-free campus, the university administration will go for segregation of waste and tie up with local civic bodies for regular collection, composting and disposal of waste.

Nalanda University student volunteers, a couple of them recipients of the prestigious Dalai Lama Fellowship, have developed an outreach programme for waste management. The students along with the urban local body are initiating training programmes on vermi compositing and other such methods.

"Under the student research projects we are collecting feedback on different aspects of waste management in Rajgir, such as solid waste management in religious tourist sites, willingness to pay for door to door waste collection, toilet construction, and others," a Nalanda University student said.

Nalanda University vice-chancellor Sunaina Singh complimented the students, saying: "The students' initiative will inspire people of Rajgir to go for proper waste management."

The university hopes its model will be emulated by other local institutes and business organisations.

The importance of institutional waste management in tourist cities is evident during peak season and events such as the current Malmas Mela, which is drawing lakhs of tourists daily and is being managed by the Rajgir Nagar Panchayat.

The Nalanda University administration has already constituted a joint advisory committee to ensure sustainability and scale-up on the solid and liquid resource management (SLRM) centre in Rajgir.

Members of students research project earlier this year have met Vinay Ranjan, city manager, and Nagar Panchayat engineer Ashok Kumar.

Read more: https://goo.gl/29UzFe

Cabinet approves proposal for withdrawal of Nalanda University Bill, 2013 pending in Rajya Sabha

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the proposal for withdrawal of Nalanda University (Amendment) Bill, 2013 pending in the Rajya Sabha.

The Nalanda University was established on the basis of a Joint Press Statement at the 4th East Asia Summit held in Thailand in October, 2009, which supported its establishment as a non-state, non-profit, secular and self-governing international institution. Subsequently, the Nalanda University Act, 2010 was passed by the Parliament and came into effect from 25 November 2010.

The present proposal is for moving a motion in Rajya Sabha withdrawing the Nalanda University (Amendment) Bill, 2013 introduced in Rajya Sabha on August 26, 2013 to amend certain existing provisions of the Nalanda University Act, 2010 and add some new provisions.

The Governing Board of Nalanda University has since been constituted as per section 7 of Nalanda University Act, 2010 with effect from 21.11.2016 with, the approval of Hon'ble President of India. The Amendment Bill will need to be discussed with the current Governing Board of Nalanda University before a final decision could be taken on going ahead with the proposed amendments.

Further, the current Governing Board may also look into the entire Nalanda University Act, 2010 afresh and suggest amendments/additions wherever necessary.

The present proposal is for moving a motion in Rajya Sabha withdrawing the Nalanda University (Amendment) Bill, 2013 introduced in Rajya Sabha on August 26, 2013 to amend certain existing provisions of the Nalanda University Act, 2010 and add some new provisions.

The Governing Board of Nalanda University has since been constituted as per section 7 of Nalanda University Act, 2010 with effect from 21.11.2016 with, the approval of Hon'ble President of India. The Amendment Bill will need to be discussed with the current Governing Board of Nalanda University before a final decision could be taken on going ahead with the proposed amendments.

Further, the current Governing Board may also look into the entire Nalanda University Act, 2010 afresh and suggest amendments/additions wherever necessary.

Teaching in the University was inaugurated by Smt. Sushma Swaraj, External Affairs Minister in September 2014. Hon'ble President of India is the Visitor of the University, Dr. Vijay Bhatkar, the Chancellor and Professor Sunaina Singh, is the Vice Chancellor. At present, the University has 116 students in three schools of studies namely School of Historical Studies, School of Ecology and Environment Studies and School of Buddhist Studies. This includes 35 international students from 21 foreign countries.
Read more:https://goo.gl/C75dUC

Five new buildings to come up on Nalanda University campus soon: VC Sunaina Singh

Nalanda University (NU) vice-chancellor Sunaina Singh on Thursday said work on construction of five new buildings on the main campus of the university would complete by the end of this year.
Addressing media persons at Rajgir, Singh said, “The administrative wing of the university will move to the new building by the end of this year and the four other buildings will also be ready for occupation by this time.”

She added altogether 17 buildings are being constructed to accommodate the academic wings and international centre. “It will enable commencement of classes from the main campus,” she added. Currently, the university is functioning from an interim campus at Rajgir.

The new campus will have an underground natural gas pipeline as part of the Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga project.

Elaborating on academic activities of the university, Singh said school of languages and literature/humanities would start functioning from the current academic year. “The school will offer diploma courses in Korean, Sanskrit and Japanese languages. Certificate and short term courses in language and literature will also be offered from the current academic session,” she said.

The VC added the university will introduce cafeteria model for educational excellence. “The cafeteria model will give an opportunity to students to pick courses from other schools in the university. The idea is to diversify the knowledge base of students and provide a unique dimension to their skill,” Singh added.
Speaking on administrative reforms in NU, the VC said, “Setting up a file tracking system and an internal audit mechanism has ensured transparency. We are also planning to set up a cultural centre as Rajgir has minimal entertainment avenues. The centre will provide a platform to the students and the staff to express themselves through art.”

Read more: https://goo.gl/xTdu8o