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IMT NAGPUR celebrates its 9th 'Institute Day'

On the 26th of July 2012, IMT Nagpur reminded itself that it was just 9 years old!

IMT Nagpur, which has grown into one of the premier B-schools of the country in this short span of time, celebrated its 9th 'Institute Day' - the day when its foundation was laid - by remembering its Founder-Director, the legendary Dr. Anwar Ali, and reaffirming its commitment to excellence.

The Chief Guest for IMT Nagpur's Institute Day has always been a pre-eminent personality - a leader in his chosen field - who is invited to deliver the much-anticipated Dr. Anwar Ali Memorial Lecture. This year was no different, with Dr. Prafulla Agnihotri, Director, IIM Trichy, adding his academic charisma to the occasion. Dr. Agnihotri, while a Professor of Marketing at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta, had co-authored the landmark book 'Principles of Marketing - A South Asian Perspective', alongwith Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong and Ehsan ul Haq. The book is a recommended 'must read' by top management institutes, and forms a part of the curriculum of many B-schools.

The event, presided over by Dr. Subhash Dutta, Director, IMT Nagpur, and Dr. Jitendra Sharma, Chairperson, PGDM Programme, IMT Nagpur, began with the auspicious lighting of the lamp followed by the Saraswati Vandana. Dr. Subhash, in the ensuing welcome address, briefly introduced IMT Nagpur and its short but rich history of academic and extra-curricular excellence. He highlighted the presence of IMT Nagpur among the Super League 2 institutes and underscored the need for continuous adaptation, dynamism and improvement.

Professor Ravindra Gadgil, Chairperson, MDP, then shared his memories and anecdotes of Dr. Anwar Ali, the first Director of IMT Nagpur. A part of IMT Nagpur ever since 2005, Professor Gadgil described Dr. Anwar as extremely humane; as was befitting for someone who took upon himself the challenge of starting an Institute of this magnitude. "Dr. Ali was known for his holistic attitude and his focus on the all-round development of students. He was an institute builder", he said.

The highlight of the function, the Dr. Anwar Ali Memorial Lecture was thereafter delivered by Dr. Prafulla Agnihotri on the topic "Challenges for Management Students: The Road Ahead". Dr. Agnihotri spoke inspiringly to the students and faculty, sharing insights from his 10 years in industry and 15 years of academic experience. He borrowed extensively from his brand marketing audits and numerous research papers to substantiate his speech.

"There are numerous dimensions of management that students need to be aware of today - the explosion of technological innovation, globalisation of markets, competition and deregulation, as well as the psychological dimensions to learning. The current times carry great opportunities; but with increased opportunities come increased stress and competitive pressures. It is an era of uncertainty, turbulence and rapid change. There are increasing Mergers and Acquisitions, Joint Ventures, shorter Product Life Cycles and, alas, increasing business failures'.

Dr. Prafulla also talked about self-discipline, patience and the importance of the right attitude, concluding with a beautiful reminder that, "Success is a choice, not a chance".

As per tradition, the concluding part of the Institute Day celebrations was dedicated to felicitating the academic achievements of the outstanding students of IMT Nagpur. A total scholarship amount of Rs. 5,00,000/- was awarded to overall toppers as well as stream toppers.

IMT Nagpur thereafter reaffirmed its duty to society with a blood donation camp - a practice that has now turned into a tradition for the Institute Day. It was heart-warming to observe that this event, organised by the institute itself, saw quite an enthusiastic response from the students of IMT Nagpur.