Delhi CM Rekha Gupta urges engineers to make India an AI creator, not just a consumer
Vellore: The 41st annual convocation of Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) became a platform for a powerful message on India's technological future on Saturday. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, delivering the inaugural address, urged thousands of graduating engineers to transform the country into a global hub of artificial intelligence (AI) creation rather than a mere consumer market for digital technology.
Ms. Gupta, a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party, noted that the central government's 'India AI Mission' has made substantial investments in semiconductors, computing infrastructure, defence, space, drones, robotics, and biotechnology. She said these sectors are critical to building a self-reliant AI ecosystem in India.
She described the shift from AI consumption to AI production as one of the greatest contributions that young engineers can make to their state and country. The aim, she said, is for India to not just use AI but to design, build, and export it. She stressed the importance of developing indigenous AI tools and platforms to reduce dependence on external technologies.
To illustrate the potential of such contributions, Ms. Gupta cited the partnership between the Delhi government and IIT Delhi to solve pressing urban problems. 'The collaboration is addressing challenges like pollution, traffic congestion, and waste management in the national capital,' she said. She urged students to apply their classroom knowledge to solve similar societal problems.
Emphasising the need for a holistic approach to engineering professionalism, Ms. Gupta said that technical skills alone are not sufficient. 'Engineering graduates should not restrict themselves to sharpening their skills but they should also develop empathy towards fellow citizens once they step out for work,' she said. She also encouraged students to understand and learn from failures, saying that strong character is built by addressing the reasons for failure.
'India's vision of make, invest, design and brand in India could be taken forward only by young engineering minds,' she reasoned, underlining the role of the youth in realising national goals.
In his presidential address, VIT founder and chancellor G. Viswanathan provided a comparative perspective on higher education in India. He noted that India's Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) currently stands at around 30 per cent, far lower than countries like South Korea (90 per cent), Japan and China (60 per cent each), Thailand (45 per cent), and Malaysia (40 per cent). The National Education Policy 2020, he said, has set a target to increase GER to 50 per cent in the coming years, which would require significant expansion of educational infrastructure.
The two-day convocation will honour a total of 11,276 undergraduate and postgraduate students, 785 research graduates, 248 Ph.D. rank holders, and 84 gold medallists. The university, which has campuses in Vellore, Chennai, Amaravati, and Bhopal, is known for its strong industry connections and research output.
Earlier in the day, Ms. Gupta inaugurated the Centre for Advanced Research in Bacteriophage and Infectious Diseases (CARBID) at the VIT campus. The centre, a joint initiative of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and VIT, will focus on research in bacteriophage therapy and infectious disease management.
The convocation was attended by Babu Unnikrishnan, vice president of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), along with VIT vice presidents Sankar Viswanathan, Sekar Viswanathan, G.V. Selvam, and Sandhya Pentareddy, executive director. Deans, faculty, parents, and students were also present at the ceremony.
