New Delhi: Lovely Professional University (LPU) celebrated its 11th annual Convocation on Sunday with former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott as the Chief Guest. The prestigious event witnessed the conferral of an honorary doctorate, Honoris Causa, upon Tony Abbott.
During the convocation, Tony Abbott recognized the achievements of 102 gold medallists and 555 PhD scholars, while also acknowledging the remarkable performance of 567 meritorious students who excelled in academics and co-curricular activities. The convocation ceremony also marked the graduation of LPU’s first batch of ‘Online Mode Students’. During the convocation ceremony, more than 60,000 graduating students received degrees in diverse domains.
In his address, Tony Abbott expressed his admiration for India as a remarkable country and urged the graduating students to take pride in their nation’s potential to bring peace, prosperity, freedom, and development to the world. He encouraged the students to utilize the confidence and belief instilled within them through their degrees and medals to make a positive impact on society.
Tony Abbott, a distinguished statesman, scholar, and leader, served as the 28th Prime Minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. Recognizing the enormous potential of India, he has consistently valued the country and its cause, advocating for India’s liberal democratic leadership on a global scale.
Founder Chancellor of LPU, Dr Ashok Kumar Mittal, presided over the convocation and expressed his delight at having the Tony Abbott as the chief guest. Dr Mittal highlighted the partnership between LPU and 16 prestigious Australian universities and shared the university’s recent achievements, including NAAC A++ Grade with a remarkable score of 3.68; top ranks in Times Higher Education World Ranking 2024 & NIRF Rankings 2023; whopping placement packages to LPU students and alumni of up to Rs 3 Crore; LPU students like Neeraj Chopra winning Olympics & Asian Games medals in sports; and many more of such achievements.
Dr Mittal also invoked the graduating students to carry the spirit of research (Anusandhan) for a brighter future, while referencing the national slogan “Jai Anusandhan” given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to LPU.
The conferral of the honorary doctorate upon Tony Abbott marks the ninth such recognition by LPU, with previous recipients including esteemed leaders such as Presidents, Prime Ministers, and Nobel Peace Prize laureates, including His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.
The convocation ceremony was attended by esteemed guests, including Lovely Group Chairman Ramesh Mittal, Vice-Chairman Naresh Mittal, LPU’s Vice-Chancellor Rashmi Mittal, Community Leader in Australia Jagvinder Singh Virk, Vice Chancellor GNDU & former Secretary, UGC Dr. Jaspal Singh Sandhu, as well as industrialists, and other dignitaries.
Students and parents from various Indian states and countries like Canada, Australia, Bhutan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka also graced the occasion, making it a truly global celebration of academic excellence.
