SMVDU Katra: Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, president of BhartiyaShikshan Mandal and Member Secretary, Indira Gandhi National Centre of Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi delivered a motivational lecture on ‘Value and Professionalism’ on the third day of the three-week Student’s Induction Program. In his address, Dr. Joshi welcomed the fresh candidates of B.Tech. programme and gave them guidelines on how to make efficient use of the various opportunities that have been bestowed upon them. While motivating the students to gain practical and effective knowledge in their respective fields, he also emphasized on the immense responsibility of the youth in carrying the country towards a more progressive future. Addressing the engineering students, he further impressed upon the need for a value driven youth instead of a package driven one. Dr. Joshi has authored a number of poems and short stories in Hindi and is the youngest founding Vice Chancellor of K.T. University of Journalism, Chattisgarh. Dr. Tiwari presented a vote of thanks to Dr. Joshi and the other speakers present in the session.

SMVDU Katra, 19^thJuly,18. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University and Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, New Delhi was signed on 19^th July 2018. Hon’ble Vice Chancellor Dr. Sanjeev Jain signed on behalf of SMVDU and Member Secretary Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi was the signatory on behalf of IGNCA (an autonomous body of the Ministry of Culture, GoI). The other dignitaries present on this occasion included Prof. V.K. Bhat, Registrar, Prof. D. Mukhopadhyay. Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Dr. Anil Tewari, Head, School of Philosophy & Culture, Sh. Vinod Sharma, Administrative Officer, Sh. Sameer Vohra, AR (Academics) from SMVDU and Dr. B.L. Mall, Project Director, IGNCA. The MoU is to initiate collaborative research projects and the preservation of regional arts and cultural heritage. The faculty and students of SMVDU will now have access to the IGNCA library and archival resources and the faculty at IGNCA would be entitled to guide the research projects at SMVDU. The collaboration will also be in terms of organizing conferences, seminars, workshops, exhibitions, festivals etc., development of digital resources and the offering of credit/non-credit courses to students in the field of Indian Art, Philosophy and Culture, Sanskrit, Textual Research, Vedic studies, Translation studies, Manuscriptology, Oral Traditions, Folklore, traditional knowledge system, Philosophy of religion, Philosophy of art, Performing arts, Storytelling Traditions, cultural informatics, conservation, Diaspora, Media and Communication, Social work and other area studies with the appropriate departments at SMVDU. Initially the MoU is for a period of five years which is extendable as per mutual agreement. It is also agreed that the IGNCA Regional Centre of Jammu and Kashmir will be established at SMVDU Campus as soon as possible.

SMVDU Katra, 18^thJuly,18: Prof. Sachchidanand Joshi, two-term ex-Vice Chancellor of KushabhauThakar Journalism University, Raipur and the Member Secretary Indira Gandhi National Centre of Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi interacted with the students of Languages & Literature on 18 July 2018. In his motivational address to fresh and continuing students of MA (English), he congratulated the fresh candidates, and motivated them to achieve success in life. While discussing the decreasing percentage of Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Indian education institutes, he stated that students who had got a chance to study in a university is a fortunate one, and students should utilise this opportunity. Earlier, in a combined session with fresh and continuing MA students, Dr. Amitabh V. Dwivedi, Head, School of languages and Literature welcomed the students and briefed them about the different courses offered by the School along with the evaluation criteria. He apprised them about the academic pattern, specially the Credit System. Dr. Anurag Kumar, Assistant Professor, School of languages and Literature interacted with students and gave a formal presentation to acquaint the students about different School activities and hostel facilities. Dr. Ranbir Kaur presented a vote of thanks to all the speakers.

SMVDU Katra: Dr. Amitabh VikramDwivedi, Head, School of Languages and Literature, along with his colleague Dr. SimranPreet Kaur, were invited for delivering lectures at three-day course on “Women Safety and Security- Issues and Challenges” at Sher-i-Kashmir Police Academy, Udhampur. In his session on “Domestic/Street Violence: Women as Soft Target”, Dr. Dwivedi apprised the course trainees about increasing rate of violence prevailing in contemporary Indian society and also how one can contribute in overcoming such situations which harass women. He also cited recent incidents of street violence, highlighting how they have an adverse impact on the psyche of an individual. Further, Dr. SimranPreet Kaur, in her session on “Gender Sensitivity- Need of Hour” sensitized the trainees about gender biasness prevalent in the society and how it is circulated through the medium of sources like films, advertisements, print media, and alike. Also, Dr. Kaur suggested various means, such as seminars, conferences and alike, through which one can spread awareness in the society. Both the sessions were quite interactive and the faculty members were well appreciated by the Police fraternity.

SMVDU Katra, 23 July 2018.Padma Shri Prof. K.L. Chopra, Ex-Director, IIT Kharagpur, interacted with the newly admitted B. Tech students of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University Katra on 23^rd July 2018 in the induction program. In his address, he highlighted the significance of multi-disciplinary approach. He mentioned contemporary revolutions in different domains of knowledge. These revolutions are based on pluralistic disciplinary approaches. Therefore, one must be inquisitive in choosing diverse courses during the program of learning, he said. By considering the example of nanotechnology, he suggested the relevance of this field in the area of chemistry, biotechnology, energy studies etc. It is our duty to focus on learning than anything other than it. While learning the basic concepts, we must raise questions related to their application. He also emphasized the relevance of working in team and project-based learning. Prof. Chopra’s inspirational lecture was followed by an intensive question-answer session. The interaction concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr. Anil Tewari, Head, School of Philosophy & Culture. 

Nentoir Technologies Pvt. Ltd, an SMVDU-TBIC incubated start-up has made to the list of Top 50 Startups, shortlisted from the pool of more than 2500 innovative startups in India. SMVDU-TBIC nurtures innovations, provides financial as well as legal support and helps entrepreneurs develop technology-based ideas into independent self-sustaining businesses. Nentoir Technologies is involved in developing integrated tech platforms to realise the vision of smarter cities, towns and villages across India. Their tech makes would make it easier for organisations to solve complex problems in an easier and efficient way. Nentoir uses technologies including GIS, AI and IoT for precise and optimum solutions. The tech idea is anticipated to help governments and private organisations in sectors like Infrastructure, Healthcare, Defense, Agriculture, Water resources etc. Presently, Ishan Verma, CEO of Nentoir Technologies is attending a boot camp conducted by IIM Ahmedabad for the shortlisted top 50 startups.SMVDU-TBIC is actively engaged in identifying such potential Entrepreneurs in North India, especially in the State of Jammu-Kashmir. SMVDU-TBIC has kept its online application portal (www.smvdutbic.org) open 24x7 for preliminary applications.Presently, more than 14 Tech startups are already established and actively working in the incubator and 10-15 more ideas are anticipated to be established as SMVDU-TBIC incubated start-ups by the end of this year. Techno-preneurs from all across the state are welcome to participate and for any enquiries can contact SMVDU-TBIC.

Two Weeks Student and Faculty Refresher Course on “Introduction to MATLAB and Research Enhancement Tool from 13^th - 22^nd July, 2018 concluded at School of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi university Katra. The program was organized along with HRDC SMVDU under funding from TEQIP-III and technically sponsored by MATLAB Inc.  Dr. K R Jha, Director, School of Electronics &Communication congratulated the organizing members for organizing quality academic program and wished for academic and research excellence for all participants. 

It is pertinent to mentioned that Coordinator of the Program Dr. Amit K Pandit the highlight the content of the course and further said that the program proved to be a breeding point of many research ideas and expert from industry provided much insight on skill set required in coming years. Dr. Pandit thanked Director HRDC,TEQIPCordinator, University Administration, Transport Section, Guest house, Finance Section, Telecom Section, students, HoD of various Schools and members of organizing committee for their kind support and cooperation and for their valuable contribution. Dr. Amit Kant Pandit specially thanked HVC  SMVDU, Prof Sanjeev Jain for his ever-available guidance, support and valuable suggestions and asked the participants to spread the information about the second refresher program of the series scheduled in July for quality academic gathering and dialogue

Katra, 15 July, 2018. Mr. Ajay Kochar, an alumni of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU), of B Tech (ECE) Batch 2013 joins M Tech (Research) Program in the prestigious Indian Institute of Science (IIS), Bangalore. Mr. Kochar informed that SMVDU played a great role in getting admission to India’s top science institute. Further, the candidate reported that he had worked on a research project titled,"Frequency agile bandpass filter for lower LTE band applications'' under the supervision of Dr. Kumud Ranjan Jha, Faculty SMVDU, and presented the research in URSI-RCRS 2017, Tirupati. Ajay also received silver medal for securing first position in ECE (2013 batch) during his study at SMVDU. Notably, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University has a great tradition of shaping the young minds and help achieving them their future goals. Also, SMVDU has ranked among top 100 Engineering Institutions by the NIRF 2018, MHRD, Govt. of India, and included in Times World University Ranking List.

SMVDU Katra, 20 July 2018. Mr. Mudasir Bashir, an alumnus of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, at the School of Electronics & Communication Engineering (ECE) Batch 2012-2014 has joined as a post-doctoral researcher at Carinthia University of Applied Sciences, Austria where the candidate has been working on 5G communication circuits. Notably, Mr. Bashir was a member of the first team which developed an Integrated Chip at IISc, Bangalore under Make in India program. Earlier, Mr. Bashir joined NIT Warangal as PhD research scholar where he specialised in Analog/Mixed Signal IC Design. Significantly, the candidate participated in he Govt. of India sponsored projects, such as DRDO, ISRO, and alike. The university has a great tradition of shaping the young minds and help achieving them their future goals. Also, SMVDU has ranked among top 100 Engineering Institutions by the NIRF 2018, MHRD, Govt. of India, and included in Times World University Ranking List.

Katra, 15 July 2018.The Induction Program for the 15^thBatch of MBA started with a welcome address to students by the Dean FoM, Prof. D. Mukhupadhyay where he highlighted the significant features of the university and achievements of the faculty members. Head SoB, Dr. Sushil Kumar Mehta, apprised students about the history of the School of Business, and laurels Business School brought to the university. Dean of Students, Dr. Yugal Khajuria,briefed students on the hostel facilities, particularly its rules and regulations. Associate Dean (Academics) focused on academic pattern, specifically the credit system, grading policy, and alike. Dean, R&D threw light on the significant research conducted in the university. Following that,an addresses of Deputy Director DQA, H. G Mishra and TPO Mr B. K Bhatia regarding the feedback process of students and training and placement progressive scenario of the university. The highlight of the day was the addresses of professors of IIM Ahmedabad & Adjunct Professor, SMVDU, Prof. Abhinandan Jain and Prof. Mukund R. Dixit (Independent Scholar) who motivated students with their words of wisdom. The program ended up with an introduction of faculty members of SoB and a vote of thanks by Dr. RashiTaggar. 

SMVDU Katra, 20 July 2018. Viraj Kala Kendra, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu in association with the Board of Cultural Activities (BCA) at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU), Katra, is screening a play titled “Chor Chor Mosere Bhai” on Monday, July 23, 2018. The play is based on the theme that there should be no short cut method for earninglivelihood by fraud and treachery. The play teaches us that one should always work hardsincerely for earning one’s living. Also, one must not deviate from the path of truthfulness and honesty. This comedy play is written & directed by Mr. Rajneesh Gupta. The language of the play is Hindustani and the duration is of one hour and fifteen minutes. Notably, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University is famous for promoting practices that will help conserve language, culture and heritage. The university has a great tradition of shaping the young minds and help achieving them their future goals. Also, SMVDU has ranked among top 100 Engineering Institutions by the NIRF 2018, MHRD, Govt. of India, and included in Times World University Ranking List