The Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports selected Mangalore University for Indira Gandhi National Service Scheme Award for 2012-13. The award comprises Rs. 2 lakh cash, a certificate and a memento.
Vice-Chancellor T.C. Shivashankara Murthy and the former programme co-ordinator of NSS at the university Gananatha Shetty Ekkar will receive the award from President Pranab Mukherjee at a function at Rashtrapati Bhawan on November 19.
Addressing presspersons here on Sunday, Prof. Murthy said a committee of the Union government reviewed NSS activities of 500 universities in the country, and 13 made it to the final round. Mangalore University was getting this award for the first time.
He said that he would recommend to the Syndicate — the highest decision making body of the university — to use the prize amount for constructing an NSS Soudha, a building for NSS volunteers.
Prof. Murthy said that the first credit for the award should go to the volunteers (students) who have worked hard to place a feather in the cap of the university. The NSS officers and principals in colleges were also responsible for the award.
Some of the yardsticks of selection included achieving the target of enrolment of NSS volunteers, conducting special camps, asset creation, participation in health awareness campaigns, and conducting national integration camps.
He said that the university surpassed the cent per cent enrolment target by enrolling 16,900 students against the enrolment target of 14,000 students set for the specified year.
Prof. Murthy said that now the university had 16,000 NSS volunteers in 160 units in 110 colleges.
Under the credit-based semester scheme in colleges, participation in NSS activities added eight credits to students in three years.
