TIRUPATI: The special gallery of the host State at the ‘Pride of India’ expo has everything to be proud of — right from farm ponds to fibernet connectivity and horticulture to higher education.
Organised as part of the 104th Indian Science Congress on the Sri Venkateswara University campus here, the expo on the “Sunrise’ State is drawing a steady crowd. There is huge focus on the higher education scenario, where Adikavi Nannaya, Acharya Nagarjuna, Andhra, Sri Padmavathi Mahila, Rayalaseema, Krishna, YSR Horticultural, Dravidian and Jawaharlal Nehru Technological universities have set up stalls. Surprisingly, SV Veterinary University, though located in the contiguous compound, was conspicuous by its absence in partnering with the event.
Sri City, which is home to three premier institutes viz., Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT-Chittoor), Institute of Financial Management and Research (IFMR) and Great Lakes International University, had a huge stall at the entrance, focussing on their special edge in the form of hands-on learning by virtue of their presence in an industrial cluster. “There is good response to the expo and the student crowd is unbelievably huge”, says IIIT Head (Academic affairs) Ramachandra Reddy Palavali. The new entrant VIT-AP (AP campus of Vellore Institute of Technology) also has a stall.
The organisers were surprised to find schoolchildren thronging the stalls set up by agriculture and horticulture departments, which showcased their mettle in the form of farm ponds, inter-cropping, hybrid varieties and subsidy schemes. The state-run AP State FibreNet Ltd, APIIC, APSCHE, Shilparamam (Department of Culture), Lepakshi (Handicrafts), APCO (Handloom) were also abuzz with visitors, while the forest department displayed the toys and wooden craft made from the red sanders.
