Mohali campus inaugurated by Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram

Union Minister of Finance, P Chidambaram, and the Chief Minister of Punjab, Sardar Parkash Singh Badal light the ceremonial lamp

The Mohali campus of the Indian School of Business (ISB) was formally inaugurated recently by the Union Minister of Finance, P Chidambaram, in the presence of the Chief Minister of Punjab, Sardar Parkash Singh Badal. The other stalwarts at the event included the Chairman of the ISB, Adi Godrej and founding board members of the Mohali campus, Analjit Singh, Rakesh Bharti Mittal, Sunil Kant Munjal and Atul Punj. Members of the ISB Executive Board, senior government officials, business leaders, faculty and representatives from the ISB’s associate schools, students, alumni and staff were also present at the inauguration.

The ceremony began on a sombre note when the audience spent a moment in remembrance of the poet and former prime minister, I K Gujral. The audience were mesmerised as Kanthrisa, the sand artist, created an evocative tale tracing the evolution of the centres of learning – from the earliest university in India at Takshashila to the formation of the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad in 2001, and then finally the birth of its second campus at Mohali.

Dean Ajit Rangnekar nudged the event forward with a call for “dedicating ourselves to the future and not for looking back into the past.”

Quoting French poet Victor Hugo, Analjit Singh, one of the staunchest supporters of the Mohali campus, proclaimed, “Nothing can stop an idea whose time has come.” Lauding this idea that had taken shape in the form of a 70-acre campus in Mohali, the Punjab Chief Minister, Sardar Parkash Singh Badal, spoke warmly about the new campus and its role in the development of institutes of higher learning in the state, and he described it as one of the most successful model of Public-Private partnership in Punjab.

But the best was yet to come. In a speech marked with patriotic fervour, Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram urged the students in the audience to consider employment options around the world but to finally return to India. “The greatest challenge is to build India," he said.

The Mohali campus, with its specialisations in Healthcare and Manufacturing that are critical to the nation’s progress, is well-poised to take on this role.