Organized by Heritage Business School, Kolkata

on 24th February 2015at The Heritage Campus

EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL COOPERATION AMONG THE SAARC

COUNTRIES

A CONCLAVE ON

INDIA PAKISTAN

BHUTAN

BANGLADESH

AFGHANISGTAN SRI LANKA

NEPAL

MALDIVES

Heritage Business School, Kolkata – adjudged The 4th in Eastern India and 30th among private B-schools in India, organised a Conclave on February 24, 2015 at Heritage Campus. The Theme of the Conclave was “Education and Cultural Co-operation among SAARC Countries”.

In his Welcome Address, Shri H. P. Budhia, Chairman, Heritage Business School, welcomed the Dignitaries. He outlined the efforts being made by Heritage Business School in the field of Management Education. The Entrepreneurship Club of Heritage Business School, while training the budding Entrepreneurs, also acts as an Incubation centre for Projects accepted for Incubation, including providing the seed capital. The Institute Industry Interface Programs enable the budding Managers to gain first hand information on Functional areas of Industry. Heritage Business School students have also started a “Green Drive” wherein teams collect the recyclable refuse from green bins placed by them. This is then handed over to a MNC for recycling.

Shri H.K.Chaudhary, Chairman, Kalyan Bharti Trust, which runs the Heritage Group of Institutions, outlined the High Quality of Education being delivered by the Heritage Group of Institutions, viz. The Heritage School, Heritage Business School, Heritage Institute of Technology and The Heritage Academy. In addition to the regular Courses, courses on Indian values, Ethics and Culture are also administered to all the students. Social Service in many areas are carried out by Heritage Students in Old Age Homes and organising Blood Donation Camps. A school is run for the economically unprivileged students in the locality. In this school in addition to studies food is also given.

Inaugurating the Conclave, His Excellency Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi, Honourable Governor of West Bengal lauded the efforts of the Kalyan Bharti Trust and the Heritage Business School in disseminating high quality of Education at affordable prices as well as carrying out a number of Social Responsibilities. On the Conclave, he appreciated the efforts of Heritage Business School in organising the Conclave and referred to the Declaration at the 18th SAARC Summit held at Kathmandu in 2014 wherein mutual co-operation between SAARC Member Countries in the areas of Education and Culture was highlighted. Shri Partha Chatterjee, Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal stressed on the SAARC resolution to remove illiteracy from the SAARC Region and promote exchange of students and Faculty between SAARC Member Countries. Shri Vivek Kumar IAS, Principal Secretary, Department Of Higher Education, Govt. of West Bengal traced the firm resolution of SAARC Countries to include co-operation in education with the establishment of a Technical Committee on Education in 1989. Since then, during each Summit, the participating Heads of State or Government have stressed on improvement of co-operation in Education and Culture among Member Countries, establishment of Fellowships, recognition of Educational Degrees and Distinctions in the field of Higher Education and promotion of Research in areas of Fundamental and Applied Research.

A Panel Discussion on “Awareness of the Educational Facilities and the Cultural Heritage of the SAARC Countries” was held as a part of the Conclave. The Panelists were Mr. Phuntsho Dukpa, Royal Bhutanese Consulate, Dr. Abhijit Sen, Hony. Consul, Consulate of Sri Lanka and Prof. Malayendu Saha, Vice Chairman, Higher Education Council, Govt. of West Bengal. The Moderator was Mr. Sitaram Sharma, Hony. Consul, Consulate of the Republic of Belarus. The Panelists informed the audience about the facilities existing in their respective countries in the field of education for students of SAARC Countries. They recounted the Scholarships and Fellowships instituted for students of SAARC Member Countries and also the world-class level of education being administered at the South Asian University at New Delhi. Many more steps are being taken and both Education and Research are being treated as Focus Areas – in line with the Declaration at the 18th SAARC Summit. The Committee of Vice Chancellors of SAARC Countries is also framing courses and methods to ensure co-operation and growth of Education. Cultural exchange is already a thrust area and this is being augmented through Theme Committees and Theme Programs.

About the Conclave

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Shri. Partha Chatterjee, Minister of Higher Education, Government of West Bengal, Diplomats of SAARC countries and of Belarus, Trustees of Kalyan Bharti Trust, Educationists on and off the dias, students, Ladies and Gentlemen.

First of all, I am extremely happy that Heritage Business School has taken the initiative to organise this Conclave on “Education and Cultural Co-operation among SAARC Countries”. I am thankful to the Heritage Business School for inviting me to inaugurate this Conclave.

In the course of the 18th SAARC Summit held during November 26-27, 2014 at Kathmandu, it was felt that after nearly 30 years of existence of SAARC, it is time to re-invigorate SAARC as an effective vehicle to fulfill the development aspirations of the people of South Asia. To this end, the Heads of State or Government have expressed their resolve to eliminate illiteracy from the Region in line with the Global goal of education for all and ensuring quality education in all Institutions by reforming curricular, teaching methods and evaluation systems adequately supported by physical, technical and other facilities. The leaders have agreed to promote Regional Co-operation in the field of Vocational Education

Excerpts from the speech of His Excellency Governor of West Bengal

and Training. The Education Ministers have been directed to develop a Regional strategy for Enhancing the Quality of Education in order to raise the standards of South Asian Educational Institutions in order to better serve the youth in the Region. The progress with regard to the South Asian University, set up at New Delhi in 2010, was also welcomed by the leaders at the 18th SAARC Summit.

Subsequent to the 18th Summit at Kathmandu, the 2nd Meeting of the Education Ministers of SAARC Countries was held in New Delhi on 31st October 2014. The Union HRD Minister of India, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani, was unanimously elected to the Chair. While addressing the Meeting she reiterated India’s initiatives for strengthening mutual cooperation amongst the Member States and the need for a well focused strategy for growing together in the SAARC region. She said “Resolve of our nations to work, study and think together has materialized in the form of South Asian University which is funded jointly by all the member countries and has started functioning nearly 4 years ago in New Delhi. It should be our joint endeavour to see it emerge as an institute of excellence which could contribute to creation of knowledge in the region through quality higher education at an affordable cost.”

India’s initiatives for inclusive education, quality improvement, use of ICT in education, development and sharing of e-resources, connectivity, e-learning and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), mutual capacity building, more exchanges of students and researchers, etc. were also discussed in the meeting and it was agreed to share the best practices and achievements in education by each Member State for leveraging on strengths.

The Ministers of Education from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives and Nepal, Chairman, Higher Education Commission from Pakistan and Senior Officers from Sri Lanka participated in the Meeting. They re-affirmed their commitment to inclusive learning and gender equitable quality education. The Ministers further emphasized the need for expanding opportunities for skill development revitalizing higher education system in the SAARC Member States through expansion of higher education institutions as well as coordinating learning modes such as open and distance learning and enhancing the accessibility and quality of education to achieve universalization of secondary and higher secondary education. The Secretary General SAARC, Shri Arjun Bahadur Thapa was also one of the dignitaries present at the Meeting.

A New Delhi Declaration on Education was also adopted at the conclusion of the Meeting identifying SAARC Perspectives on the Post-2015 Education Agenda and Regional Priority Areas of Action and it was agreed to expand the scope of cooperation.

To improve Cultural Co-operation, the leaders directed the concerned Agencies in the respective Governments to effectively implement the SAARC Agenda for Cultural Co-operation and agreed to take measures to preserve and restitute the South Asian Cultural Property and create a SAARC Heritage Property list together with operational guidelines. 2016 has been declared as the SAARC Year of Cultural Heritage and all the concerned Bodies have been asked to develop an Action Plan for its success. It has also been agreed to develop a Cultural Trail linking major Buddhist historical sites in the Region. They further agreed to facilitate access of persons visiting prominent and holy sites of the Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and other major religions in South Asia.

As proactive measures, all the SAARC countries are embarking on several schemes to improve the education and cultural in the South Asian Region. Eradication of illiteracy is on the Agenda of all Governments. In many states education up to a certain level is free and, in some cases, incentives like free mid-day meals are in place to achieve this goal. At Secondary

Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi

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levels there are several States who offer Scholarships or Freeships to students, particularly female students. These will go a long way in the upliftment of the masses and eradicating illiteracy in the Region.

In the field of the Higher Education there has been a Paradigm shift in both the pedagogy as well as in the design of the syllabi and Course Curriculum. A large number of Higher Education Courses are being designed jointly by the Industry and the Academia. An increasing number of Research Programs are being patronised through Grants & Support Programs while Research Scholars are being encouraged to do Fundamental Research and are being offered a plethora of Incentives for this. The Region is witnessing an explosion in the number of students and Faculty coming out of their residential areas and taking up study, teaching and Research Programs in SAARC member countries.

As a consequence of increasing Trade and Commerce volumes among the SAARC countries, there is a steep increase in the employment statistics. Mobility and Career Advancement are the two buzzwords today. Geographical and language barriers have become of secondary importance. This is resulting in an increased flow of ideas, flow of knowledge, of culture, of information – all being key factors for Economic Development. The University Grants Commission- SAARC Fellowship Program is an excellent booster for post-PhD Research Projects. The University Student Exchange Programs not only aids in increasing the exposure of students but also considerably improves the Cultural Bonding between the SAARC Countries.

SAARC has come a long way in the three decades of its formation. However, there is a lot more to be done. The information on facilities for Higher Education, Employment Potentials along with Facilities for Research needs to be disseminated among students, Faculty, Research scholars. All Stakeholders and Analysts need to be provided with updated information on the facilities available within the SAARC countries. Employers are required to accept Educational Qualifications of candidates from SAARC Member Countries. Students Exchange, Faculty Exchange and Industry – Academia- Interface Programs need to be accelerated in terms of Visa and Permit Requirements.

I am very happy that a Panel discussion on these and other related issues has been organised by Heritage Business School today. The deliberations of the learned and experienced diplomats of SAARC countries to day during the Conclave will surely reach out to a large Student – Faculty – Research Scholars Fraternity in this Region. This will go a long way in realising the objectives of the Heads of State as delineated in Clause 17 of the Declaration at the 18th Summit. Ways and means of facilitating flow of this and related information and Knowledge will surely be found out during this Conclave and before the 19th Summit all the objectives of the 18th Summit will be realised.

Once again I congratulate Heritage Business School for organising the Conclave and I wish the Conclave the very best.

Jai Hind

Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi His Excellency Honourable Governor of West Bengal

His Excellency Shri Keshari Nath Tripathy, Honourable Governor of West Bengal, Shri Vivek Kumar, Principal Secretary Department of Higher Education, Shri H.K.Chaudhary, Chairman Kalyan Bharti Trust, Shri H.P.Budhia, Chairman Heritage Business School, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am extremely happy that the Heritage Business School has organized this Conclave on “Educational and Cultural Co-operation between SARRC Countries “ today and I thank them for inviting me to deliver the Keynote Address at this Conclave.

The Eighteenth Summit meeting of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was held in Kathmandu, Nepal on November 26-27, 2014. The Summit was attended by the Heads of Government or State of all SAARC countries. At the end of the Summit, a Declaration was issued

- Reaffirming their commitment to the principles and objectives of SAARC for ensuring the welfare and quality of life of the peoples of South Asia;

- Recognizing that after nearly thirty years of its existence, it is time to reinvigorate SAARC’s regional cooperation and revitalize SAARC as an effective vehicle to

Excerpts from the speech of Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal

fulfill the developmental aspirations of the peoples of South Asia;

- Determined to deepen regional integration for peace and prosperity by promoting mutual trust, amity, understanding, cooperation and partnership;

Shri Partha Chatterjee

4

- Resolved to eliminate illiteracy from the SAARC Region

- Promote Cultural co-operation and exchange of Cultural Groups between SAARC Countries.

The Heads of State or Government expressed their resolve to eliminating illiteracy from the region in line with the global goal of education for all and ensuring quality education in all institutions by reforming curricula, teaching methods and evaluation systems adequately supported by physical, technical and other facilities. The leaders agreed to promote regional cooperation in the field of vocational education and training. They directed their Education Ministers to develop a Regional Strategy for Enhancing the Quality of Education in order to raise the standards of South Asian educational institutions in order to better serve the youth in the region. The Leaders welcomed the progress with regard to the South Asian University.

They emphasized the need for adopting appropriate national policies and programmes for utilizing the youth force and their skills for economic and social development, especially through the creation of productive self-employment opportunities. The Leaders welcomed the declaration of July 15 as the World Youth Skills Day at the 69th Session of the UN General Assembly and agreed to commemorate, as appropriate, the said event by SAARC.

They directed to effectively implement the SAARC Agenda for Culture and agreed to take measures to preserve and restitute the South Asian cultural property and create a SAARC heritage list together with the operational guidelines. They declared the year 2016 as the SAARC Year of Cultural Heritage and tasked the relevant bodies to develop an action plan for its success. They also agreed to develop a cultural trail linking major Buddhist historical sites in the region. The Leaders further agreed to facilitate access of persons visiting prominent and holy sites of Islam, Hinduism, Christianity and all other major religions in South Asia.

In line with the Declaration at the 18th SAARC Summit last year there has been a lot of work done by several Committees, including the Committee of Heads of different Universities and University Grants Commissions or equivalent in the SAARC region. In the field of Higher Education a number of Scholarships and Fellowships have been instituted by the Member Countries. A number of Fellowships have been announced. There has been positive steps in recognizing the academic qualifications based on Degrees awarded by Universities in SAARC Countries. There has been substantial progress in the Academic affairs of the South Asian University set up in New Delhi as a Centre of Excellence, since the 1st Academic Session started in August 2010. Research students, both in the areas of Fundamental Research as well as Applied Research , have the facility to migrate to SAARC countries and continue their Research with Financial and Technical help from Experts and Guides in the SAARC member Countries.

Education Ministers and officials of eight South Asian countries have resolved to collaborate on increased use of Information Technology and improving the quality of education.

The second meeting of Education Ministers of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) held in New Delhi last year, was attended by representatives of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and chaired by Human Resources Development Minister Smriti Zubin Irani.

The Ministers issued a joint statement titled ‘The New Delhi Declaration on Education.’

The priority areas of action decided upon include enhancing the learning and development readiness of pre-school age children, ensuring education for all, expanding skill development, facilitating mutual recognition of qualifications and mobility of students and teachers and expanding alternative ways of learning like open and distance education.

India’s use of Information and Communication Technology in education, development and sharing of e-resources, connectivity, e-learning and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) was discussed by the Ministers.

Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman of Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission, proposed a SAARC education and research network for sharing information and communication between the member countries.

A technical meeting to finalise these plans has been tentatively scheduled for June 2015.

However, a lot has to be done. We are resolutely framing strategies in line with Declaration of the 18th Summit and will continuously strive towards achieving higher and higher Benchmarks.

I thank the Heritage Business School for having organized this Conclave and also for having invited me to deliver the Keynote Address. I am sure that the Panel Discussion following this Program will be educative and informative. I wish the Conclave all the best.

Shri Partha Chatterjee Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal

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His Excellency the Honourable Governor of West Bengal, Honourable Minister of Education, Govt of West Bengal, Distinguished Delegates from SAARC Countries, Learned Academicians, dear students,

I am extremely happy that the Heritage Business School has organized a Conclave today on ‘Educational and Cultural Co-operation among SAARC Countries’. This is a very pertinent issue and I am confident that the Panel Discussion will come up with very important issues which will be recommended for deliberation in the appropriate Forum. I am thankful to the Heritage Business School for inviting me to deliver the Theme Address at this Conclave.

It is generally felt that economic and social development cannot be ensured without optimum utilization of human resources for which education is a sine qua non. SAARC has, therefore, emphasized the importance of promotion of education. The Heads of State or Government at the Ninth Summit at Male´ in 1997 acknowledged that illiteracy was one of the major causes impeding the development of the vast human resources of South Asia and a major factor contributing to the region’s economic backwardness and social imbalance.

Excerpts from the speech of Principal Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Govt. of West Bengal

Cooperation in education entered the SAARC agenda early with the establishment of a Technical Committee on Education in 1989. Since reorganization of the SAARC Integrated Programme of Action (SIPA) in 1999, this subject has come under the purview of the Technical Committee on Human Resources Development. A SAARC Chair, Fellowship and Scholarship Scheme is in operation. A SAARC Consortium of Open and Distance Learning (SACODiL) has been created with a view to standardization of curricula, mutual recognition of courses and promotion of transfer of credits. A SAARC Teachers Forum has been established. Nevertheless, a lot more remains to be done before concrete benefits of such cooperative activities are clearly visible.

Education in South Asia suffers from the twin problem of lack of access and of excellence. In majority of the SAARC Member Countries.Enrolment of children of primary school age is far below the Global level. This problem is further compounded by high levels of dropout. Thus literacy rates remain low. The situation at the secondary and tertiary level is no better.

The SAARC Social Charter, which was signed by the Heads of State or Government during the Twelfth Summit at Islamabad, reaffirmed the importance of attaining the target of providing free education to all children between the ages of 6 - 14 years. The Member States agreed to share their respective experiences and technical expertise to achieve this goal.

At the Thirteenth SAARC Summit held in Dhaka in November 2005, the leaders noted the achievements of the Member States during recent years in the area of primary education and stressed that to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century Member States must make important strides in the areas of science, technology and higher education.

At the invitation of the Government of Sri Lanka, the First Meeting of the SAARC Ministers of Education/Higher Education was held in Colombo on 27 March 2009 preceded by the Meeting of the Senior Officials of the Ministries of Education/Higher Education. This Meeting considered matters relating to SAARC-UNESCO Cooperation in the field of Higher Education, Role of the Committee of Heads of University Grants Commissions/Equivalent Bodies and Open & Distance Learning in South Asia. This Meeting focussed on Higher Education Policies and Strategies in South Asia and deliberated on the Plan of Action on Higher Education.

The priority areas of action decided upon include enhancing the learning and development readiness of pre-school age children, ensuring education for all, expanding skill development, facilitating mutual recognition of qualifications and mobility of students and teachers and expanding alternative ways of learning like open and distance education. South Asian University

At the 13th SAARC Summit at Dhaka in November 2005, India proposed the Establishment of South Asian University (SAU) as a Centre of Excellence with world-class facilities, availability of professional Faculty to students and world class facilities for Researchers. The Expert Group on Marketing to finalize the modalities of establishing SAU met in March 2007 in New Delhi and the 1st meeting of Inter Governmental Steering Committee for the establishment of SAU was held in May 2007 in New Delhi. The 1st Academic Session of SAU started in August 2010.

SAARC Chair, Fellowship and Scholarship Scheme in 1987 started with Scholarships being offered by Bangladesh, India and Nepal (MBBS, Master’s Degree on Rural Development).

Shri Vivek Kumar

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Objectives:

a) Promote Regional Unity, Solidarity, Peace and a common understanding amongst people of the Region through exchange and sharing of knowledge, skills and Technology.

b) To contribute to the field of HRD needs of member States by meeting the needs of social and economic growth through enhancement and exchange of skills and knowledge which are existing within the Region.

c) Inspire and enable scholars to further their capabilities and achieve personal fulfillment and to contribute to the benefit of the SAARC Region through generation of application of new knowledge.

Open and Distance learning – In line with the decision of the 10th Summit on 31.7.1998 at Colombo, VCs of Open University met in Colombo in January 1999 and made recommendations for establishment of SACODIL(SAARC Consortium on Open and Distance Learning). This was followed by several meetings and the setting up of a Secretariat at Bangladesh Open University in Dhaka, Bangladesh. A large number of Scholarships are being awarded by SAARC Countries and a system for credit sharing, reciprocal recognition of Degrees, exchange of students and Faculty is in place.

Committee of heads of University Grants Commission / Equivalent: After the First Meeting of the SAARC Minister of Education/Higher Education at Colombo during 26-27 March 2009, Policies on Higher Education in line with SAARC – UNESCO Co-operation in the field of Higher Education have been formulated.

The second meeting of Education Ministers of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) held in New Delhi on Friday, 31 October 2014, was attended by representatives of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and chaired by Human Resources Development Minister of India, Ms Smriti Zubin Irani.

The Ministers issued a joint statement titled ‘The New Delhi Declaration on Education.’

The priority areas of action decided upon include enhancing the learning and development readiness of pre-school age children, ensuring education for all, expanding skill development, facilitating mutual recognition of qualifications and mobility of students and teachers and expanding alternative ways of learning like open and distance education.

India’s use of Information and Communication Technology in education, development and sharing of e-resources, connectivity, e-learning and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) was discussed by the Ministers.

At this meeting Mr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman of Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission, proposed a SAARC education and research network for sharing information and communication between the member countries.

A technical meeting to finalise these plans has been tentatively scheduled for June 2015.

Higher education in the SAARC Countries has undergone a Paradigm shift in terms of Pedagogy, mapping onto Employability and a definite and well-designed thrust on Fundamental Research has been given in several Technological Fields. Cross flow of students and faculty have helped to disseminate ideas, knowledge and contributed to raise the Knowledge Platform to a higher level. Benchmarks in achievements have been set, only to be improved upon on a consistent basis.

Education has reached the poorest of the poor in a determined effort to root out illiteracy from the Region. Teachers are being encouraged to re-tool themselves for a broader canvas and spread the light of knowledge.

However a lot more needs to be done. Each meeting of Heads of State as well as Ministers of Education, Vice Chancellors and Heads of University Grants Commissions is preparing an improved Road map for the improvement in the Levels of Education, Free exchange of information pertaining to Education and the day is not far when this Region will be Trend Setter in Higher Education in the World.

I congratulate the Heritage Business School and the organizers for having organized this Conclave within a few months of the 18th SAARC Summit. I am sure the deliberations during the Panel Discussions will be very informative and educative to the students and learned audience.

I thank the organizers for having invited me to deliver the Theme Address in this Conclave.

Shri Vivek Kumar, IAS Principal Secretary, Dept. of Higher Education,

Govt. of West Bengal

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Glimpses of the Conclave

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His Excellency Honourable Governor inaugurating the Conclave Shri Partha Chatterjee Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal lighting the lamp during the inauguration

of the Conclave

Shri H. K. Chaudhary, Chairman, KBT lighting the lamp during the inauguration of the Conclave

From L to R - Shri H. K. Chaudhary, Chairman, Kalyan Bharti Trust (KBT), Shri Partha Chatterjee, Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal, His Excellency Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi Honourable Governor of West Bengal,

Shri H. P. Budhia, Chairman, Heritage Business School and Shri Vivek Kumar IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Govt. of West Bengal

Shri H. P. Budhia, Chairman, Heritage Business School, lighting the lamp during the inauguration of the Conclave

Glimpses of the Conclave

Shri H. P. Budhia Chairman, Heritage Business School Shri H. P. Budhia with His Excellency Governor of West Bengal

Shri H. K. Chaudhary with Honourable Minister of Education Shri Partha Chatterjee

From L to R Shri S. Bhajanka Secretary, KBT, Shri H. K. Chaudhary, Chairman, KBT and Shri Sanjay Budhia, Patton Group with His Excellency Honourable Governor of

West Bengal

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Shri Vivek Kumar IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Govt. of West Bengal

Shri H. K. Chaudhary Chairman, Kalyan Bharati Trust

His Excellency Honourable Governor Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal, Shri Partha Chatterjee

Shri H. P. Budhia Chairman, Heritage Business School handing over the memento to his Excellency Governor of West Bengal

Shri Vivek Kumar IAS , Principal Secretary, Dept. of Higher Education, Govt. of West Bengal with Shri H. K. Chaudhary

From R to L- Prof. K. K. Chaudhuri, Advisor,

Heritage Business School, Shri P. R. Agarwala, Chairman,

Heritage Institute of Technology, Shri Dayaram Agarwal, Trustee, Kalyan Bharti Trust, Dr. Sajal

Dasgupta, Director, Directorate of Technical Education, Govt. of West Bengal

Shri S. Bhajanka Secretary, KBT handing over the memento to Honourable Minister of Education

From L to R- Prof. S.P.Roy, CU, Ms. Sujata Roy, President, IIT-KGP Alumni

Association, Smt. Bhawna Agarwal, Member, School Managing Committee, The Heritage

School, Royal Bhutanese Consulate, Mr. Phuntso Dukpa,

Prof. B. B. Paira, Advisor, KBT

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From L to R- Mr. D.K.Sanyal, Trustee, IISWBM, Shri Probir Roy, Executive Director, Kalyan Bharti trust, Dr. Malayendu Saha, Vice Chairman,West Bengal State Council of Higher Education, Shri H. P. Budhia, Chairman, Heritage Business school, Shri

Vivek Kumar IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Shri Basudeo Tikmany, Chairman, Agrasen Balika Shiksha Sadan, Shri H.K.Chaudhary, Chairman, Kalyan Bharti Trust, Prof. B.B.Paira, Advisor, Kalyan Bharti Trust, Shri P.K.Agarwal,

CEO, KBT, Com. S. Dey, Campus Administrator, The Heritage campus, Ms. Abira Das, CEO, Agrasen Balika Shiksha Sadan

Glimpses of the Conclave

Glimpses of the Conclave

Panel Discussion on “Awareness of the Educational Facilities and the Cultural Heritage of the SAARC Countries”

From L to R- Mr. Phuntsho Dukpa, Dy. Consul, Royal Bhutan Consulate, Shri Sitaram Sharma, Chairman, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

Institute of Asian Studies, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India, Dr. Malayendu Saha,Vice Chairman, West Bengal State Council of

Higher Education, Dr. Abhijit Sen, Hony. Consul, Consulate of Srilanka

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Prof. Jyotish Prakash Basu, Vice Chancellor, West Bengal State University (On the right) with Dean of Heritage Business School,

Prof. Malay Kumar Banerjee

From R to L in the first row- Prof. B.B. Paira, Advisor, KBT, Royal Bhutan Consulate, Mr. Phuntso Dukpa, Member of

The Heritage School Managing Committee, Smt. Bhawna Agarwal

From R to L- Ms. Seema Sapru, Principal, The Heritage School, Ms. Gomathy Venkateshwara, Educationist

From L to R- Shri Basudeo Tikmany, Chairman, Agrasen Balika Shiksha Sadan, Shri H.K.Chaudhary, Chairman, KBT, Ms. Abira Das, CEO,

Agrasen Balika Shiksha Sadan

From L to R- Shri H. P. Budhia, Chairman, Heritage Business School, Prof. B. B. Paira, Advisor, KBT, Prof. K. K. Chaudhuri, Advisor, Heritage Business School, Mr. D.K.Sanyal, Trustee, IISWBM

Dr. Abhijit Sen, Hony. Consul, Consulate of Srilanka

Mr. Phuntsho Dukpa, Dy. Consul Royal Bhutan Consulate

Dr. Malayendu Saha, Vice-Chairman, West Bengal State Council of Higher Education

Shri Sitaram Sharma, Chairman, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies

Media CoverageBartaman, Date: 25.02.15

The Hindu, Date: 25.02.15

Dainik Jagran, Date: 25.02.15

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Media Coverage

Khabar 365, Date: 25.02.15

The Indian Express, Date: 25.02.15

Prabhat Khabar, Date: 25.02.15Sanmarg, Date: 25.02.15

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Impressions

A fruitful conclave organized by Heritage Business School. It will help in strengthening educational and cultural ties amongst the SAARC Countries

His Excellency Honourable Governor of West Bengal, Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi

Commendable approach for enhancing education in SAARC Countries. Heritage Business School added another cap to their feather

Honourable Minister of Education, Govt. of West Bengal, Shri Partha Chatterjee

Deeply impressed with the infrastructure and facilities as also the sense of discipline and a pursuit of excellence. This is undoubtedly, one of the State’s best institutions in higher education. May it continue to grow and scale greater heights of excellence

Principal Secretary, Higher education, Govt. of West Bengal, Shri Vivek Kumar IAS

Very impressive campus and faculties. I wish the students all success in their future career

Hony. Consul, Consulate of Srilanka, Dr. Abhijit Sen

It is a wonderful experience to share my thoughts with the dignitaries of the SAARC Countries. I do acknowledge the endeavor of the Heritage Business School. All the best

Vice Chairman, West Bengal State Council of Higher Education, Dr. Malayendu Saha

It was an overdue visit to Heritage for me as I was fi rst invited long back. An excellent educational institution with great ambience and culture. My best wishes

Chairman, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India, Shri Sitaram Sharma

My fi rst visit to Heritage has been a wonderful experience. I will wish to visit again for a campus tour.

Dy. Consul, Royal Bhutan Consulate, Mr. Phuntsho Dukpa

From the photographs and media coverage, I can understand that the event was highly successful. I missed it this time but will defi nitely make up next time.

Tax Consultant, Shri Kailash B Goel

Great pictures! Missed the privilege of being present there.

Warm regards from a very cold Bavaria!

Chairman, Kariwala Industries, Mr. Anil Kariwala

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Impressions

Thank you very much. I missed the programme.

Pro-Vice Chancellor, Calcutta University, Prof. Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay

Congratulations on carrying out this splendid “coup” ahead of any other institution or governmental agency.

Thanks for the amazing series of photographs.

Best Wishes to the KBT team and the HIT Team that has made this small area of Kolkata / Bengal a hub of Learning, Beauty and Serenity.

Educationist, Ms. Gomathy Venkateshwara

Good press coverage and nice photos - thank you for sharing them with me. It was a pleasure attending the event.

President, IIT-KGP, Alumni Association, Ms. Sujata Roy

Many congratulations to you for organising this high profi le event successfully in your esteemed institution. Wish you all the best for all the future such event too.

Manager-East, Sodexo, Mr. Saibal Bhaduri

It would have been my greatest pleasure to be present in this event. Unfortunately I am in Vizag from 23rd to 25th Feb on an offi cial work which has been planned in advance with some offi cials coming from other States.

Thanks for the invitation.Wish the Event a grand success.

Executive Director, Peerless Hotels, Mr. Kunal Sen

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