PASIGHAT, 28 Sep: Newly appointed Vice-Chancellor of Arunachal Pradesh University (APU), Prof Ashan Riddi, called for collective efforts to make APU a model state university known for academic excellence, transparency and inclusive growth.
Prof R iddi on Monday held separate meetings with the teaching faculty members and non-teaching staff of the university, and called upon the university community to work with dedication to take the varsity to greater heights.
Prof Riddi, who took charge as the second VC of APU, succeeding its founding VC Prof Tomo Riba, interacted with the faculty members in the morning and the non-teaching staff in the afternoon at the university campus.
Addressing the teaching fraternity, Prof Riddi urged the teachers to be sincere, ethical, and committed to their profession.
"A university is known by its teachers. We must first strive to be good teachers before anything else," he said.
He emphasised on fostering a strong research culture, ensuring quality teaching-learning, and strict adherence to the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the latest UGC guidelines.
"Encourage curiosity, promote research, and strive for excellence. Our classrooms must become centres of critical thinking and innovation," the VC said, adding that professional growth and capacity building of teachers would be his priority.
He said also that APU must strive to become a centre of excellence at par with national standards, and called for introducing more multidisciplinary and skill-oriented courses in the coming academic sessions, in line with the NEP.
"The responsibility of building this young university lies on our shoulders. We have to build it brick by brick with honesty and teamwork," he said.
Assuring all possible support from the administration, Prof Riddi said he would do everything under his authority for the welfare and wellbeing of the teaching community.
In a similar interaction with the non-teaching staff, the vice-chancellor said that both teaching and non-teaching staffs are two pillars of any university and one cannot function without the other.
He urged them to discharge their duties with sincerity, punctuality and a sense of ownership.
"Discipline, dedication and ethical conduct are non-negotiable. If we are sincere in our duties, the university will automatically grow," he told the staff.
Prof Riddi also sought suggestions and feedback from both the teaching and non-teaching staff regarding academic, administrative and infrastructural development. He noted their grievances and suggestions, and assured that he would act on them in a phased manner.
Prior to his appointment as vice-chancellor of APU on 16 September, Prof Riddi served as senior professor and former head of the department of history at Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU), and director of RGU's Centre for Distance and Online Education (CDOE).
