According to Mr. Rahul Bajaj,Chairman, Bajaj Auto Limited, “Our country needs good quality education accessible to all students irrespective of the income of their parents.”
Mr. Bajaj was speaking at the inauguration of the restored Mechanical Engineering Laboratory as ‘Bajaj Auto School of Mechanical Engineering’ at College of Engineering Pune (CoEP). Present on the occasion were Mr. Raghunath Mashelkar, veteran scientist; Mr. Prataprao Pawar, Chairman, Sakal Media Group; Mr. BB Ahuja, Director, CoEP; Mrs. Lila Poonawalla, Founder, Lila Poonawalla Foundation amongst others.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Bajaj said, “Access to good quality education is very important. For this, we need public institutions. However, there is a perception amongst the general public that only private institutions provide quality education. This has to change.”
Mr. Bajaj further added, “To ensure that public schools also provide quality education, our company would be helping 250 schools (mostly government schools) in Pimpri-Chinchwad area with the needed resources to be able to ensure good quality education to students.”
Mr. Mashelkar stressed on the need for innovation and focus on the link between education, research and innovation. He said, “At present, youngsters do not want to be job seekers but they want to be job creators. For this, the Make in India initiative is important. But when we say ‘Make in India,’ it should be invention and development in India,” emphasised Mashelkar.
On the occasion, Mr. Ahuja spoke about the importance of the Mechanical Engineering Department, which was established way back in 1912. According to him, “The Bajaj Auto School of Mechanical Engineering is a milestone achieved by the department. The restored laboratory would help to promote research among students and bridge the gap between institutions and industries.”
