New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Thursday said her government was actively working towards providing the Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women (IGDTUW) with a new campus in the Narela Education Hub, as the university highlighted its growing footprint in technology, innovation and research.
Addressing the valedictory ceremony of the 'Prabodhan' Induction Programme-2026 at IGDTUW, Gupta said the proposed campus would help expand the university's reach and enable more students from Delhi and across the country to pursue technical education.
"We want to make sure that not just 1,000 students, but a large number of students from across the country as well as Delhi can study here," she said.
The programme was attended by Delhi Lieutenant Governor and IGDTUW Chancellor Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Education Minister Ashish Sood.
A state-of-the-art lecture hall complex was also inaugurated at the university during the event. The complex has been equipped with modern facilities for teaching, interaction and knowledge exchange, according to the Delhi government officials.
Gupta said the induction programme marked the beginning of a new journey for students, which could bring both excitement and anxiety, but expressed confidence in their ability to pursue their goals.
"A new journey starts for the students today, a journey that might cause excitement and anxiety at the same time. But I am sure the girls present today are more than capable to follow their dreams," she said.
Highlighting the university's significance, Gupta said IGDTUW, established in 2013, was Asia's first government women's technical university and had challenged the perception that technical education was a male-dominated field.
She urged students to move beyond merely using existing technologies and become creators of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
"Technology, knowledge and experience have no gender," Gupta said, calling upon students to become job creators rather than merely job seekers.
The university has expanded opportunities in emerging areas such as robotics and artificial intelligence, cyber security, and mathematics and computing, the press release said.
Under the NETRA-NAARI-NETRITVA initiative, 75 surveillance drones have been developed and demonstrated for the Delhi Police, it said.
The government has also supported a Centre of Excellence for Advanced Drone Technology with around Rs 8 crore and established a Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security, according to the officials.
The recent placement season saw IGDTUW students receive more than 1,000 placement offers, with the highest package touching Rs 1 crore, it said.
Sandhu encouraged students to pursue quality technical education and emerge as innovators and leaders, saying they were not merely preparing for future jobs but for shaping the future of the country.
"Their responsibility, therefore, is not limited to using technology; they must become creators and innovators of technology and give a new direction to the country's future," he said.
Sood highlighted the role of technology, skills, innovation and practical learning in preparing students for a rapidly changing job market.
"We need to understand what patriarchy is. We cannot smash patriarchy through hashtags. It will be smashed when daughters of IGDTUW sit in front of computer screens and write AI algorithms for India's security system," he said.
Referring to the surveillance drones developed by IGDTUW students for the Delhi Police, Sood said such initiatives demonstrated the ability to convert technology into solutions for real-world needs.
He said the Delhi government was working towards developing an Education City spread over around 160 acres and had approved a Rs 400-crore Startup and Incubation Policy to support young innovators and entrepreneurs.
During the programme, the 'IGDTUW Times' booklet documenting the university's academic achievements, student activities, research and innovation was released.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
