The 14th Foundation Day of Asian School of Business Management was celebrated in a solemn ceremony on 10th August, 2017 in the Institute’s campus. On this occasion, Prof. (Dr.) Binayak Rath, former Vice Chancellor of Utkal University and former Distinguished Professor of IIT Kanpur delivered the Foundation Day Lecture on ‘Socio-economic and Environmental Challenges Facing India in the Contemporary World’.
Dr. Rath, in his lecture, emphasised on equitable distribution of wealth, and gave the example of India, where only 20 persons own two-third of the total wealth of the country. This, he said, was the result of commercialisation of business. He opined that while making reasonable profit is essential for any organisation to thrive, profiteering leads to economic and social inequality all over the world.
Prof. Rath gave emphasis on environment and explained how environmental issues lead to economic and social challenges. He gave the example of our country, where child mortality is much higher compared to many other countries of the world. He asserted that the emerging economies of the world, including those of India, China and the other BRICS countries, will not be able to sustain their rate of growth if environmental concerns are not effectively dealt with.
Presiding over the ceremony, the Founder and Director of ASBM, Prof. (Dr.) Biswajeet Pattanayak traced the growth of the Institute and dealt at length on its culture and traditions. He conveyed his gratitude to all the stakeholders, including the students, their parents, industry and the employees, and assured that the Institute will leave no stone unturned for quality education and holistic development of its students.
On this occasion, fruit-bearing trees were planted in the campus by Prof. Rath and Prof. Pattanayak along with the students. The new issue of the ASBM newsletter, ‘Phoenix’ was also released.
Sumana Bose, a student of the Institute, coordinated the Programme and proposed a vote of thanks at the end.