Republic Day Message on 26 th Jan 2009

I love Kakinada?s energy and its enormous outpouring of creativity and imaginative thinking. I am sure that all of you will take responsibility for change, change from a College to a world class University. It will be a change for better and the best change from a College. 
The Constitution of India assures its citizens justice, equality, and liberty; the words "socialist", "secular" and "integrity" were added to the definition in 1976 by constitutional amendment. 

We celebrate the adoption of this constitution on January 26 each year as Republic Day. It is the longest written constitution of any sovereign nation in the world, containing 395 articles, 12 schedules and 94 amendments, for a total of 117,369 words in the English language version. 

Constitution of India is the supreme law of the country, every law enacted by the government must conform to the constitution. Constitution declared itself as a "Republic" on January 26, 1950, a date thereafter celebrated annually as Republic Day in India. The Constitution had been drafted by the Constituent Assembly which was set up when India gained its independence from the British in 1947. This, in fact, was a deliberate act: the 26th of January was initially India's "Independence Day", one of Mahatma Gandhi's many symbolic acts during India's struggle for freedom against British colonial rule, and the adoption of the Constitution on this date was felt able to strengthen its initial meaning, one calling for Indians of all ages to declare their freedom from the British Raj. It is one of three national holidays in India, the other two being the nation's Independence Day on August 15 (since 1947) and the birthday of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi on October 2.

From the 15th century onwards the European colonists had started visiting the shores of India. In the early 16th century, Portuguese rule was established on the West coast of India at Goa. But the Portuguese did not succeed in moving deep into the country, their domination remained confined to the coastal periphery. It was only the British who managed to take on the mantle of administering the country from the Mughals. 

To mark the republic day occasion, a grand parade is held in New Delhi, the Capital of India, beginning from Raisina Hill near the Rashtrapati Bhavan (Presidential Palace), along the Rajpath, past India Gate and on to the historic Red Fort in the old quarter of the city. Different infantry, cavalry and mechanized regiments of the Indian Army, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force march in formation, decked in all their finery and official decorations. The President of India, who is also the Commander in Chief of the Indian Armed Forces, takes the salute. The Chief Guest of the parade is a Head of State of another nation. The parade also includes many traditional dance troupes, to symbolize the cultural heritage of India. It traditionally ends with a colourful flypast by Air Force jets in a tiranga formation. Similar parades are held in the capitals of all the states of India, where the Governors of the respective states take the salute.

Shri Potti Sriramulu has sacrificed his life for the formation of Andhra State. Because of his sacrifice the States Reorganization Act was initiated. The States Reorganization Act of 1956 was a major reform of the boundaries and governance of India's states and territories. The act reorganized the boundaries of India's states along linguistic lines, that is how the state of Andhra Pradesh is formed with all Telugu speaking people. Although additional changes to India's state boundaries have been made since 1956, the States Reorganization Act of 1956 remains the single most extensive change in state boundaries since the independence of India in 1947.

The nonviolent Indian independence struggle led by the Congress, left India determined to be the master of its fate in an international system dominated politically by Cold War alliances and economically by Western capitalism. The principles of nonalignment, as articulated by Nehru and his successors, were preservation of India's freedom of action internationally through refusal to align India with any bloc or alliance, particularly those led by the United States or the Soviet Union; nonviolence and international cooperation as a means of settling international disputes. Nonalignment was a consistent feature of Indian foreign policy by the late 1940s and enjoyed strong, almost unquestioning support among the Indian elite.

The term "Non-Alignment" itself was coined by Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru during his speech in 1954 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In this speech, Nehru described the five pillars to be used as a guide for Sino-Indian relations, which were first put forth by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. Called Panchsheel (five restraints), these principles would later serve as the basis of the Non-Aligned Movement. The five principles were:

1. Mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty 

2. Mutual non-aggression 
3. Mutual non-interference in domestic affairs 
4. Equality and mutual benefit 
5. Peaceful co-existence 

Jawaharlal Nehru's concept of nonalignment brought India considerable international prestige among newly independent states that shared India's concerns about the military confrontation between the superpowers and the influence of the former colonial powers. New Delhi used nonalignment to establish a significant role for itself as a leader of the Third World in such multilateral organizations as the United Nations (UN) and the Nonaligned Movement. The signing of the Treaty of Peace, Friendship, and Cooperation between India and the Soviet Union in 1971 and India's involvement in the internal affairs of its smaller neighbors in the 1970s and 1980s tarnished New Delhi's image as a nonaligned nation and led some observers to note that in practice, nonalignment applied only to India's relations with countries outside South Asia.

Under Indira Gandhi in the early 1980s, India attempted to reassert its prominent role in the Nonaligned Movement by focusing on the relationship between disarmament and economic development. By appealing to the economic grievances of developing countries, Indira Gandhi and her successors exercised a moderating influence on the Nonaligned Movement, diverting it from some of the Cold War issues that marred the controversial 1979 Havana meeting. Although hosting the 1983 summit boosted Indian prestige within the movement, its close relations with the Soviet Union and its pro-Soviet positions on Afghanistan and Cambodia limited its influence. 

The early 1990s demise of the bipolar world system, which had existed since the end of World War II, shook the underpinnings of India's foreign policy. The Cold War system of alliances had been rendered meaningless by the collapse of the East European communist states, the dissolution of the Warsaw Treaty Organization (Warsaw Pact), and the demise of the Soviet Union. In the early 1990s, most colonies had become independent, and apartheid in South Africa was being dismantled, diminishing the value of anticolonialism and making it impossible for antiracism to serve as a rallying point for international political action (India and South Africa restored full diplomatic relations in 1993 after a thirty nine year lapse). The Panchsheel (Panch Shila), peaceful resolution of international disputes, and international cooperation to spur economic development which was being enhanced by domestic economic reforms were broad objectives in a changing world. Thus, the 1990s saw India redefining nonalignment and the view of India's place in the world. 

India also is a founding member of the Group of fifteen, a group of developing nations established at the ninth Nonaligned Movement summit in Belgrade in 1989 to facilitate dialogue with the industrialized countries. 

India has been home to several ancient civilisations and empires. Culture and religions have flourished over the millennia, and foreign influence has ebbed and flowed even in 2000 BC. India comes under direct rule of the British crown after failed Indian mutiny in 1858. 1947 saw the end of British rule and partition of sub-continent into mainly Hindu India and Muslim-majority state of Pakistan. In 1962 India lost brief border war with China. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru passed away in 1964. His death caused a huge leadership vacuum; Lal Bahadur Sastri took over for a brief period. A fragile Indira Gandhi daughter of Nehru emerged as a successor to Lal Bahadur in 1966. 1975 to 1979 saw turbulent periods and non democratic actions like declaration of emergency, jailing 1000s of people, compulsory birth control etcetera. 1980 - Indira Gandhi returns to power heading Congress party splinter group, Congress (Indira). 1984 - Indira Gandhi assassinated by Sikh bodyguards, following which her son, Rajiv, takes over. 1991 - Rajiv Gandhi assassinated by suicide bomber sympathetic to Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers. 

1991 - Economic reform programme was started by Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao. 1998 - BJP forms coalition government under Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. 2000 May - India marks the birth of its billionth citizen. 2002 July - Retired scientist and architect of India's missile programme APJ Abdul Kalam is elected president. 2004 May - Surprise victory for Congress Party in general elections. Manmohan Singh is sworn in as prime minister. 2006 February - India's largest-ever rural jobs scheme is launched, aimed at lifting around 60 million families out of poverty. 2007 July - Pratibha Patil becomes first woman to be elected president of India. 

2008 August 20th JNTU Kakinada formed. 

I assumed charge on 20.08.2008 as the first Vice-Chancellor of this magnificent Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Kakinada.

1. Engineers Day was celebrated on 15-09-2008.

2.The meeting of Chairpersons and Principals of Affiliated Engineering and Pharmacy colleges of was conducted on and 22nd and 23rd September, 2008 respectively. 

3. Dr. M.M. Pallam Raju, Honorable Minister of State for Defence, laid the foundation stone for the ?Center for Deference Studies? on 27-09-2008 in JNTU Kakinada. 

4. Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi?s birthday was celebrated on 2nd October. Senior Citizens and Gandhians were facilitated on the occasion. 

5. Prof. J.S. Rao, Retired Professor from I.I.T., Delhi and Consultant, ALTIER, Bangalore and distinguished alumni, visited University on 01-10-2008 for discussion on modalities to stat M.E. nuclear Engineering Course at JNTU Kakinada.

6. Dr. K.C. Reddy, Hon?ble Chairman, A.P. State Council of Higher Education, Hyderabad inaugurated the newly constructed ?FIRST FLOOR OF NAGAVALI HOSTEL? on 04-10-2008. 

7. Workshop on ?Deployment of ICT (Train the Trainers)? was conducted on 19-10-2008 to the heads of the departments of Computer Science and Engineering of all the affiliated engineering colleges. 

8. National Seminar on ?Soil Problems in Construction Engineering? was conducted on 19-10-2008 conducted by JNTU Kakinada and Indian Geotechnical Society, Kakinada Chapter. Prof. M.R. Madhav former Professor at IIT Kanpur, Dr. Siva Kumar Babu Professor in Civil Engineering IISC Bangalore graced the event.

9. Workshop on ?Advances in Signal and Image processing? was conducted on 20-21October 2008. Prof. S.B. Rao Former Director, Indian Statistical Institute, Prof. B.N. Chaterjee former Professor IIT and Dean Academics, Prof. Ganapathi Panda from NIT Roorkie graced the event and presented Expert Lectures. 

10. Meeting with the Principals of affiliated colleges of JNTU Kakinada on ?Strategic Planning? on 22-10-2008 was organised. Mr. Chris Kaufman, Management Consultant, Agovia, USA discussed plans for developing the University and details of Strategic Planning. 

11. Bharat Ratna Moulana Abul Kalam Azad?s birthday was celebrated on 11-11-2008 as National Education Day. 

12. Birthday of Bharat Ratna Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru was celebrated on 14-11-2008. On this occasion New Engineering / Pharmacy PG Courses were launched. Prof. A.V. Krishnam Raju, Hon?ble Vice-Chancellor Dr. NTR University of Health Sciences, Vijayawada graced the occasion. Centralized Computer Lab (7x24 hrs facility) was inaugurated by Sri Mutyala Bhaskara Rao Alumni (NRI) of our College of Engineering.

13. One day workshop on ?Women in Nation Building? was celebrated on 19-11-2008. Prominent citizens of the city graced the occasion. 

14. University flagged off ?RUN OF UNITY? on 23-11-2008 and NCC cadets and students participated in the run. 

15. Dr. S. Challapa, IAS, Principal Secretary, Agricultural Technology, Govt. of A.P., Hyderabad visited the University on 15th December and assured assistance to establish B.Tech Agriculture Technology. Sri. G. Ravi Babu, IAS, Additional Commissioner Disaster management, Govt. of A.P., Hyderabad visited the University on 15th December and assured assistance to establish B.Tech Disaster Management. 

16. One Day National Workshop on ?Research Initiatives? on 19-01-2009 was conducted under Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP)


I need all your whole hearted support in transforming this University to a world class University.

Jai Hind, Jai JNTU Kakinada