First Year B.E./B. Tech Orientation Program 2025

0:00 civil engineering from PSG College of Technology. Respected principal, deans, heads of departments, faculty members, office bearers of the students union, dear parents and our young aspirants stepping into engineering education. A very good morning and warm welcome to all of you. Empowerment through education is not just a goal. It is our greatest tool for equality, innovation and transformation. This belief has been the guiding light of PSG and Sun's charities for a century and the driving force behind PSG of college of technology for the 75 years today in shaping minds and building

0:46 futures. Today marks the beginning of a lifechanging journey for our young minds. The batch of 25 30 as they step into institution known not just for producing professionals but for nurturing thoughtful responsible individuals who go on to make meaningful contributions to the world. Through invocation we welcome purpose into our hearts and grace into every endeavor. Let us begin this journey with the rendering of Tama Ivar by Miss Treya and Miss Adelin Prrenita. I request all of you to rise for the prayer song.

1:41 Fore [Music] speech. [Music]

2:28 Every gathering begins not with words but with the warmth of welcome. Let the warmth begin as I invite Dr. CG Shiva Kumar, head in charge, department of civil engineering to welcome the gathering. Good morning respected principal Dr. K. Passen, our esteemed chief guest Shriar Nakiran, respected directors, deans, heads of departments, faculty members, staff, proud parents, my dear first year students, ladies and gentlemen. It is indeed a great privilege and honor for me to welcome you all to this first

3:13 year orientation program of PSG College of Technology. Today is a very special occasion as we open a new chapter in the lives of our young students who are about to embark on an exciting journey of learning, discovery and growth. At the outset, I extend my heartfelt welcome to our respected principal Dr. K. Prakasan whose guidance and vision have been the driving force behind the progress of our institution. I take great pleasure in welcoming our chief guest Shri Nakiran, an illustrious alumnest of the 1991 BE civil engineering branch who is currently serving as general manager and head

3:58 competency cell heavy civil infrastructure lent construction Chennai. We welcome you sir. We are truly honored to have him with us today to inspire our young minds. My hearty welcome to CFO officials from PSG Industrial Institute and TQM cell. I also warmly welcome our distinguished directors, deans, hostile wardens, controller of examinations and dignitaries on and of the dis.

4:46 My warm welcome also extends to all the heads of the departments, faculty members, staff and the dedicated members of our administrative and support teams. A very special word of welcome to the proud parents gathered here today. Your encouragement and trust mean a great deal to us. We assure you that we will work together to help your awards realize their potential and shape their future. And at most importantly, I warmly welcome our first year students, the newest members of the PhD family. You have joined an institution with a rich legacy, strong values and a culture of excellence. I

5:33 urge you to make the best use of the opportunities you will find here in achievements or academics, research, extracurricular curricular activities and personal development. This orientation program is designed to introduce you to the systems, resources, and opportunities available and to help you feel at home in your new environment. I encourage you to listen attentively, interactively, and start building friendships and networks that will last a lifetime. Once again I welcome you all and wish you wish our students a rewarding and enriching journey ahead. I thank our management and principal for giving me

6:20 this opportunity. Thank you. Thank you sir for the warm welcome. A man of vision and perfection. I now invite our principal Dr. K. Praasan to deliver the presidential address. A very good morning to the August gathering. Chief guest of the orientation program Sri R Makiran B civil aluminus 1991 batch currently general manager and head

7:05 competency cell heavy civil infrastructure Lars and Dubro construction Chennai dean placement Dr. Nadraan dean SU students students affairs Dr. K Nadraan Dr. Saravan and Dean autonomous functioning professor CG Shivagumar Hod Department of Civil Engineering Dr. Kangawan Warden general's hostel Dr. P. Rani Warden ladies hostel Dr. Haridas controller of examinations, dignitaries of the DAS, invitees, deans and heads of departments,

7:53 guests, dear, freshers, alumni, parents, ladies and gentlemen. This is a great occasion for me and our team to work for welcoming the freshers with their parents to this great institution to build their life and their personality in the years to come. I thank all of you for giving us an opportunity to serve you for this noble purpose of PhD institutions wherein molding personality, providing education and instilling values in the life of a

8:42 student to make them leaders in the years to come. Thank you once again for that. I met each one of you the freshers I think say about 1,3000 and odd numbers I have spoken to every one of you when you came for admission I have asked you where are you from and what is your background whether it is UGPG or all the ME programs MCA programs MBA programs majority were in UG programs and I have seen you how you interact. So you were waiting outside my room to come inside large number then one by one

9:28 for everybody have spent time to talk to talk in talking to you and I have seen some of you some of you leaving the room all of them going to the door and standing who will open the door and somebody will attempt they are not able to open the door that is how life it will be sometime then I will say turn and push I think somebody has to tell you turn and push turn right and push that's what I told so they could get out of the room so I'm just imagining how you have from schooling how you have reached plus two completed and got into an institution of eminence for your education and how innocent you are now continue the same that's what I wish

10:16 to say continue all your qualities and enrich the came. So at the outset my hearty congratulations to all of you for achieving your dream of getting admission to PhD Tech to your chosen branches whatever it is. I congratulate your parents for withstanding all the pressures and pains during plus two and other exams to see that they get admitted into a great place. Please give them a big applause. Now about the platform you have, you have climbed on a big pedestal of your

11:03 life. It is a very vibrant platform. Everywhere you will find energy. Wherever you stand, it will make you jump. Slowly you will know that examinations also will make you jump after some time definitely. But let us start with a very happy and pleasant thoughts of your previous education. How you went to your LKG, UKG crying and the attendant would have snatched the child from the parents and taken to the classroom and it becomes used to that and slowly they get adjusted then first standard, second standard all this continue and some teachers would have motivated you

11:49 definitely in your journey to think better rather than the syllabus and read extra play and absorb many things from the world. I thank all of them. Now when you come to PSG it is a noble institution of very high values. You would have seen the symbol 100 and 75. There may not be many institutions who are ex who are grown to this level of maturity continuously in the field of education facing the challenges. It is like a great great grandfather mentoring grandchildren. So you need not worry about the value system or the process inside. It is highly mature and

12:34 stable. So the founding fathers of PhD institutions they started the institution in the name of charity started with schools ITI industry poly techchnic arts college. Now there are 30 plus institutions under the charities PSD and charities trust established in the year 1926 and it grew and grows in leaps and bounds. PSG College of Technology founded in the year 1951 by Dr. Jr. Damodaran another visionary of the PSD family created a great technical education facility molded so many children of

13:22 Tamil Nadu and Guatur to become leaders. We have one leader in our midst. Sri Arnakiran is an classic example of the academic rigor and mentoring of leadership. Having said this, whenever we assemble in a grand meeting, what we should remember is it is a place of energy, very fine form of energy. I request you to absorb it maximum because this moment will not be coming again. It is a moment made for you. So try to immerse fully, try to learn fully from this meeting. Actually your classes

14:07 start today. There is no other relaxation. We start working from today. Afternoon you will have your other sessions to two days leave. Monday onwards you will have your other programs. So don't think that there is another period of relaxation. So at this point of time what we should invoke is the blessings of your elders your teachers and blessings of the founding fathers of BSG and the founding father of BSG Tech Dr. Jr. Madagaran on your behalf I invoke the blessings and pray that it showers on you all the time and continues in your life today's education and today's generation

14:53 you are all brilliant there is no doubt I need not talk about the syllabus or exam or anything I want to tell you something very simple before I hand over to the chief guest I should not take much time and I don't have much Totally we have about 2 hours plus. So this is a class. So 2 hours continuous class you imagine by various teachers of the institution. Why you have come here? That is the first thing the purpose purpose of joining a great institution and purpose of this meeting and purpose of everything. You please start understand understanding that what we do in PhD tech is we teach

15:43 advanced technical subjects to make you face the problems of I mean engineering problems of the society provide solutions which are cost effective and improve the life of humanity that is what is done in the classroom room but in a subtle way. What we do is we are creating habits very simple but very difficult to identify. What we do in this process is we are creating habits. What is a habit? What is its relevance? I will tell you after some time. So making habit is very important. Making good habits. making habits which will bring your identity or

16:31 what you want to become that is more important. So we work with that in mind. Though you may find examinations, classroom teaching, so many other programs superficially it will look mundane but beneath you have a very subtle process of creating habits that are reinforcing each other. Very important of that word reinforcing. Please look at the Indian economy today. There are eight sectors you call it as core sector that is coal, crude oil, natural gas, fertilizer, refinary products, steel, cement and electricity. They define our economy. Meaning any

17:16 changes happening in these eight domains will either make our currency powerful or it will make it weak. In July 2025 according to the data total oil we have imported is 4.55 million barrels per day total. So it is a very big number in July 25 it is based on the international data in January 2025 from US we have bought about 2.8 lakhs barrels per day. Russia was our major supporter but I I think somewhere in March it reached three lakh in June because of the war that horos

18:04 it became 4.39 lakh barrel per day and now you see what has happened to the Indian economy because of the tariff imposed by the government what it means to us is we have to make our country self-reliant energy require requirement we have to understand for a large population transportation requirements are very high. So is there any alternate? But we have to go with the world. You can't say we don't want it. So we have to be traditional but we have to be modern. That is the essential purpose of education. We have to be traditionally founded. But you must remain modern with time. Otherwise, we will become obsolete. Therefore, the education given here is also relevant. But I again request you to understand the purpose of

18:52 getting educated. That is to develop habits which will make you think in these lines not just a minimum. You should have habits which will enrich your personality expand it to a big level and make you a leader after some time. So classroom is a place of repetition. You will see the same teacher in a week several times. They may repeat the same thing. They may repeat the same concept. So repeating is not to make it by heart. It is to make it natural. So when something is repeated your behavior will change and this behavior will be natural after some time and that is what is the most positive atmosphere. You can develop it anywhere but in an

19:37 academic institution of level of PhD tech that intensity of this process will be high. So even if you refuse to accept I use the word refuse to accept the repetition it will penetrate. It is like a fragrance shop when you enter the shop only smell will come you you can't say I don't want it. It will automatically come but somebody want to inhale more he most welcome but everyone will be immersed in that little bit. So I told you something about the Indian economy. Then the role of engineering education. It is to build the economy. There is another big term called balance of payment. You must know all this because today you are all techsavvy. You use mobile phone. You have internet banking. From where the money is coming, how you spend, what is our standing on

20:24 international economic measurements. All these you must know. That's the reason I'm telling every year students are well aware of changes. So when you learn any subject for example civil engineering or computer science or electrical you know textile whatever it is it has an impact on the economy of the country not at that moment you are trained for a purpose again definitely there is a higher purpose of life that also you will get when you go through this process that is to lead a life of virtues that is ultimate there is there is no doubt it is like this repetition see If you pray every day whether you are keeping well or not well whether it is raining whether it's is a pleasant weather you

21:12 go to the place of uh that place of prayer you pray that shows your commitment I'm coming to another point classroom is a place of worship please understand this it is another habit if you pray regularly the in the place of worship and you go every day whether you have a problem or Not you make a habit of going. Similarly, make a habit of coming to the class. It should be a habit. It is not a rule. It should be a habit. So when you come repeatedly that confidence keep improving in you and what happens in the classroom will transform you with time. Maybe next four years of time or five years time. For some people it may be lateral entry we have three years of time.

21:59 So commitment is very important. Directly I'm talking about the attendance. It is very important for a student to earn 100% attendance. It should be a habit. So I told about the first habit. Attend all the classes. Develop good learning habits. What is it? Teachers will tell you I am not the person because of time. Each experience will modify your personality. Everything is an experience. This is an experience. You have a large number of people whom you don't know. So when you interact your behavior will change next moment. So continuous interactions in a positive mind it improves your behavior improve the reaction and you get transformed with time.

22:46 Dress code. There is a dress code. Using the dress code is a habit. It has a purpose. Again why there is a dress code? Because safety belonging to the same place all of you are same I'm not talking about uniform whatever dress code is mentioned in our college calendar you have to obey please make it a habit hostel hostel got well definfined rules obeying rules should be a habit again we should not question it is all meant for safety for several decades it has been practiced so it is a habit by repetition it has come and many people have benefited by this therefore Therefore that habit you should develop. So one habit is going to classroom. Next

23:32 habit is to learn. Next habit is to obey the rules of hostel and take care of all your other personal things. Build habits for a personality please. What personality you want to become? I want to be a leader then you have to take that type of route. I want to be a sportsman then you have to take that type of route system. So each personality you identify what you want accordingly define your system for a winner and a person not winning goal is same both want to the goal is same they want to win but one wins one doesn't win the reason is the system one would have used the best system of very

24:18 highly refined methods so nobody can challenge his performance he wins the other person would have missed somewhere like Olympics point not second or point not some small parameter there they lose. Therefore identify your personality create a system to get it. If you want to be rich you need not get 1 cr salary. If you save you become rich but if you earn more and spend more you will be where you were. Therefore understand the role of habits. Very very important. Make it natural. That is why repeat we say repeat I repeat many teachers will repeat all my teachers used to repeat that is how we are trained. So but people will feel bored

25:07 to repeat that that is the thing how to overcome the boredom when you repeat something when you do for a good purpose that makes you different from others. Please develop this habit. A one one more example I think by this time my time will be getting over all of us were born we don't know how many people have looked after us now when we see a baby born 6 months 7 months what it does it moves its limbs it cries nothing else we think it is crying and this limb

25:52 Moment is something but actually it is feeling actually it is feeling its own limbs and understand the envelope that it can reach. Then this moment will further give a cue and craving then there will be a reward. So there is a cue there is a craving then there's a response then there is a reward for everything. That is how it happens. So baby feels I should do something. So there's a cue then it craves to do that maybe to turn or to crawl whatever it has to do. Then it body responds. What is ammenable or what

26:37 is capable of at that point of time it does. Then what is the reward? It turns or it crawls. After some time it stands up. Then it forgets all this. So the habits which are but it gets ingrained in the brain or mind somewhere. So the habits which you do repeatedly it gives a reward then it becomes natural it will stay. Same thing it is like voting two parties are there one gets majority it wins. Same you need not get a unanimous selection success there will be against and there will be four. So positive you make it four make the count more that gives the reward when the reward comes you become confident and you know how it

27:24 happens. Same thing you would have done in plus two exams. Same problem 100 times you would have done same problem without even having light even in darkness you will do eyes closed you can do why you are making it natural then in the exam you see the question paper before seeing only you'll be able to answer I mean in some exams not in all the exams so you you gain confidence by repeating in workplace same thing why training of the people repeat reliability confidence and success So please fundamentally habit the other things the autonomous system examination vacation leave

28:10 don't talk about that now autonomous dean will explain but I will tell you what is an autonomous system it is a living system it lives it is like our body if you are not well body will tell you I am not well I have a headache I have a pain so until you rectify it will not leave you. You have to go to doctor or you do something and you become all right. Same thing happens in autonomous system. So it is based on lot of feedback teaching many places alumni all such uh stakeholding group feedback comes through teachers industry classroom every day it gets refined. So autonomous system is a living system. Please understand it is not the regulation alone. It is persuasive.

28:57 Please understand when you come to BSG please try to learn some higher level concepts not the just exam and getting mark pass fail. I don't want to speak all that I know you are above that otherwise you would not have come here. So be ready to understand what is this persuasiveness persuade push not compel but compelling is also required otherwise if you say only persuasion nobody will do the job. So both will be there. So there will be some dos and don'ts and there will be persuasion. More should be from persuasion. That is the meaning of habit. So I have spoken to you about the Indian economy currently. And what is the role of engineering in building this economy creating confidence in the country, confidence in everybody. A

29:43 small country lives with best resources. Big countries with more resources, less population, they will be always affluent. But limited resources, large population, then everyone has to work hard otherwise it will be in chaos. Please understand the purpose of education, the purpose for which you have come and what we offer to you directly and indirectly with a very strong foundation. I repeat, we try to mold you with creating habits, learning habits, leadership habits, startup habits, placement related habits, living habits, hygiene related habits. So everyone, every for every habit there is a system. Please go through you will pick up all this and

30:28 you will go much beyond what you have imagined when you entered PhD. Now the classes will start. I should tell something like a teacher also otherwise it is not proper they will repeat department also will repeat please attend all the classes that is my request your attendance should be 100% there is no exemption unnecessarily don't look for concessions don't look for relevances attend all the classes very important once you do that I think all problems will get solved second rules of the hostel dress code all these you should obey it is not meant for a hindrance it is for safety Please understand all this. Everything is for safety. If you are in the classroom, you will be protected from many evils. I can

31:15 guarantee. But if you don't come to class, there is a chance you may get into some small problem. It may be casual. Then it becomes a habit. Cutting glass becomes a habit. Don't get into such thoughts. Attend all the classes. There's a system to see that you attend the class. You are free. I am requesting parents. Please do only one thing. Students should attend the class. All the parents every day evening or next day please ask your son or daughter what you did today. That is enough. What you learned today or what you did today? I used to tell this story. One of the great Nobel laureates in quantum mechanics when he received the Nobel prize many people asked who trained you for this particular research. He said

32:02 nobody trained. But again they asked then he said it is my mother. Then they asked what degree she has got. He said there is no degree she is a housewife looked after looking after children. Then he said one thing when every mother used to ask other children what other travel you did what is your plan for next week such things his mother asked what you learned new today that's all he is a Jew I think Isak Rabi quantum mechanics novelate so he said this is what my mother did every day one question same question repeat I'm talking about the habit again so parents should have a habit of asking asking questions. You cannot be scared. Parent have to put this question. Student has

32:48 to develop many habits to answer this question. Today I did sports. Today I learned this. Today I did this. Today I discuss something with the teacher like this. He will evolve over a period of time. So this is my request. Please ensure that you keep monitoring your w about his attendance about his learning habits and they are safe here. They need not break all the time and go home. Don't ask when is the vacation. Vacation will come when it is announced. You can you have to plan your travel. I agree and it will be known well before and when one day holiday comes don't break the classes and go. There is a huge library. So many things you have to learn here and you are safe. There is a very good system to take care of any

33:34 disturbance from senior students. They're all well behaved, well controlled. there is a hospital. So you need not worry for your day-to-day things. Worry for your habits. Again I repeat when you are given a good system please enrich your habits. So again I thank all of you all my colleagues. See the entire effort of arranging this. It is a huge team. You you can imagine the the magnitude of this event. large number of students, large number of guests and parents arranging all the facility here. So civil department has come forward and shivakumar and team all the deans all the faculty from various departments everybody has contributed. So that is how we work. So it is again a

34:20 habit when something is there the whole people will come together. So it's a place of building positive habits. So when you build your habit please imagine what you want to be then build the habit. It is not for an outcome. It is for your personality change, identity. I want to become something. I want to become XY startup, entrepreneur. Build the habit. For that you need education. That is what is being done. Without education, you cannot solve the problem. Academic ability is essential. And I think all other things will be spoken by some more. I will address you again. Today this much only possible because of time and you you also will be in a worried mind what to do next. Don't worry about all that. All this will be taken care. Uh I will speak again after one month or two months in the campus

35:08 maybe in two groups. I will address the students once more. By that time you will become more resilience to understand all this. And with this uh I thank all of you. I thank the management that is a very noble system in our uh entire working. Anything for the benefit of students, anything, learning, sports, hostel, all the time, generous managing trustee Sriel Gopal Krishna. He's the chairman of governing council as an aided institution. We have a governing council, government nominee, UGC nominee, ACT nominee, online nominee, all regulatory bodies are there. We have a lot of accredititations placement dean will speak on the networking with companies and what

35:54 happens in the placement process and how you have to prepare for that though it is early but it is good to know what what should be done and I think about 300 companies visit the campus and they select the talent don't worry about those issues now learn maximum automatically you'll be ready for a cause don't imagine the company imagine the knowledge required at that point of time after 3 years 4 years where you want to be positioned yourself please do that and everything will be good nothing to worry so with the blessings of your parents your previous teachers our teachers and the founding fathers and the management and the founder principle Dr. BRD you will achieve sublime heights

36:42 there is a word called sight gabber in German it is a cue when time changes you feel hungry but you will will get lunch after 12:30 you have to listen some more time similarly you feel getting up when the light changes so these are all natural inputs triggers that is the meaning of sight gabber the other one is called sightgeist That is the spirit of the time. So what is the spirit of the time today? It is AI. Everybody will speak about AI. Internet is not much popular. Everything is AI. Even internet may be attacked by AI. All these are evolutions in knowledge. You are also part of it. Because when the whole universe is evolving, we we can't keep quiet. It

37:28 will push you. It will push you. Like birds enter the airport. How they enter? You can imagine the door is self opening. So some birds will fly in front of that door opens other birds will enter. So they also learn how technology trains universe or universe trains others either way. So please be a part of this journey. It will be very smooth. Please have confidence in yourself and in us it will be done very well. So with this I wish you all the best and great success in your life. Thank all the parents and all the stakeholders for being with us and supporting in supporting our journey towards excellence. I conclude with one uh

38:14 statement in the vicin let good thoughts come from all the directs to all of us. Wish you all the best. Thank you. Thank you sir for the detailed words of guidance and motivation. And now I deem it an honor and wish to take a few moments to introduce our chief guest of the day Shri Nakiran general manager and head competency cell heavy civil infrastructure independent company of L&T construction Chennai. A proud gold medalist in civil engineering from PSG College of Technology, he joined the LNT

38:59 in 1991. His technical depth and leadership skills have guided several prestigious projects with over 34 years of experience in the civil engineering and construction industry. Shri Nakiran has held a wide range of leadership roles including site engineer, building designer, engineering coordinator, business development manager, head of corporate center and head of special projects. In his current role, he leads two strategic arms of the HCIC, the pre pre-cast works competency center and the temporary works competence center, equipping young engineers with advanced

39:47 skills for large-scale infrastructure projects across the country. As a designer, Nakiran has contributed to the design of more than 30 notable structures of India, including the Chaitanya Joti commemorative building at Putaparti and the Dhana Mandonder for the Khalki Trust, which features a unique column free space, an engineering marvel with intricate concrete deta detailing. Sir has also spearheaded and was instrumental in establishing Asia's second largest geotechnical lab for the Mumbai Amadabad high-speed rail project overseeing a record field investigation

40:34 over 250 kilometers in just 10 months. Recognized for securing major international consulting orders and for his strong technical acquak institution of engineers India and has presented at prestigious forums in India and abroad. We are indeed proud to welcome back our alumnist whose professional journey reflects the very values that PSG Tech stands for. Please join me in inviting Shri Nakiran R to deliver the chief guest address to the badge of Bing engineers,

41:26 respected principal, PSD College of Technology, respected heads of various departments of PSD College of Technology. the director, deans, teaching and non-eing staff of this great institution, parents of the budding engineers. Good morning to everyone. First, a few words to the beloved parents who toiled and sweated to bring their children to where they are today. You need not worry about how your sons daughters will emerge in their career after graduation. HCL Shivadada

42:11 Chandra and Dr. Miles Swami Anaduray Mafay K Pandy Rajan Anamalai IPS Academy Award winner Kotelango Leon Dr. Aram Vasagam of ISRO Dr. Anavali of SRC, Dr. Kalpana Aravinda of ISRO. These are all the alumni and the limit is and the name names and the list is endless. These are all the alumnes who graduated from this elite institution and they have attained greater heights in their own fields. I assure you that you are handing over your sons and daughters in the safe hands of the principal and the faculties of this wonderful institution.

42:59 Now to the young minds of this beautiful country. Dear students, it was rather an emotional moment for me after 34 years of graduation coming back to your own college. I am a I was a day scholar and I never stayed in the hostel. So I wanted to make it a point to stay in this campus at least for one night. So I opted to stay here though my parents are just 2 kilometers away. I had a morning walk going through the campus. I was seeing the freshers the first year students with their parents with all their bags and baggages coming into the campus with a lot of

43:45 anticipation in their minds. Dear students, it's a it's truly a pleasure moment for me to be talking with all of you today. You have taken one of the biggest steps in your life, stepping into the world of engineering. I know what might be going on in your minds right now. Maybe you are excited. Maybe you are confused. Maybe you are asking yourself what am I going to do after four years of engineering? What kind of jobs are out there for me? Is it better to pursue higher studies? Should I think about starting something on my own? Am I even in the right branch?

44:32 These are the questions. Friends, first let me say these are completely normal questions. Everyone has them and I also in 1991 when I joined along with CG Shivakumar, Leila Krishna and Kandan who are all the Hod's here in this August institution. We also had the same doubts in our minds, same anxiety in our minds, same excitement in our minds. What matters is that you start finding the answers early and that's why what we are here to do today. India produces more than 15 lakh engineering students every year.

45:17 15 lakhs. That number might feel scary. Not to worry. Don't be alarmed. It just means the competition is high and the world is evolving quickly. Earlier having an engineering degree alone was enough to get a job. But today skills matter more than degrees. Attitude, curiosity, and willingness to learn. These are the things that can set you apart. Now, let's look at how engineering has changed. Gone are the days when engineering was just about machines, buildings, and circuit. Today, engineers are building smart cities,

46:03 powering renewable energy plants, creating applications that run businesses, automating factories and with robotics and IoT, using artificial intelligence to solve health and social problems, developing tools for agriculture, banking, space, education. No matter in which branch you are now, civil, mechanical, electrical, electronics, computer science, biomedical or any other branch, you have a role to play in shaping the future. I said more than 15 lakh engineering students every year. As an alumnest of this great institute representing the industry, my question is whether all

46:50 these 15 lakh engineering students are employable. That is the question which is haunting every every firm in the industry. Out of these 15 lakh students, out of these 15 lakh engineers who are going to graduate, where do you want to be? Do you want to be in the top 1%? Do you want to be in the top 5%? or top 10%. It is for you to decide. In the next 30 to 40 minutes, my goal is to help you see the big picture and how in whatever branch you are, there is a world full of opportunities waiting for you and how you can equip yourself to grab these opportunities to fly high in

47:36 your career. Friends, engineering today merges the physical with the digital. Consider how civil and mechanical engineers are now collaborating with computer science scientists and data engineers to build smart infrastructure. Technologies like 3D concrete printing are revolutionizing the construction speed and cost. India's first 3D printed post office was printed by Lassin Tubro at Bangaluru any year back. Building information modeling allows entire buildings to be designed, simulated and optimized digitally before a single brick is laid.

48:23 Digital twins help monitor buildings in real time, predicting wear and tear before they happen. Drones conduct topographic surveys and site inspections. Robots are laying bricks, painting walls and assembling prefab structures. Ratan Tata of he led the Tata housing to embrace modular construction and smart infrastructure long before it was common. His vision was to bring dignity through housing while incorporating innovation into traditionally rigid sectors. Lasserin Tubro is the forerunner in construction of modular housing which was started in late8s when we built the Tiscoco housing for Tatas in John Shitpur. Here the key message is

49:11 engineers must learn to combine traditional domain expertise with emerging technology. Digital fluency is now a core engineering skill. Now let's talk about AI and ML. AI is no longer a buzz word. It's powering everything from Netflix to NASA. In civil and structural engineering, it helps in structural health monitoring, failure prediction and design optimization, predictive maintenance and robotics, automation are the fields where AE is involved heavily in mechanical engineering. In electrical and electronics engineering, smart grid and power system optimization, fault detection in circuit are the areas where

49:57 AI is effectively used in automotive industry. Self-driving cars, driver assist systems, real-time traffic and hazard detection are those in which AI and ML are supporting the engineers in a big way. Satya Nadala, you all must have heard about him. He transformed Microsoft by putting artificial int intelligence at its core. Under his leadership, Microsoft invested heavily in Azour AI chat GBT and AI ethics. Friends, the message here is learn how AI and ML are shaping your field. These are the words which may be looking Greek and Latin for you. Over a period of time definitely you're going to learn what it

50:44 is. You don't need to become a data scientist, but you must understand how data and algorithms impact your domain. You all will agree that the world is in your pocket. Yes or no? From Suiki and Zomato to UPA and Digi Locker, the smartphone has become a control hub. This ecosystem is powered by APIs, cloud computing, databases, UI and Us, UX, user interface, user experience, and payment gateways. Mechanical engineers design IoT hardware. Electronics and communication engineers develop signal processing circuits.

51:31 Computer science engineers build platforms. Civil engineers designed smart cities integrating these systems. In the early years or in the early days, transferring money India money in India was a slow and tedious process. People relied on checks, demand racks, all of which took time and often required physically visiting a bank. Even sending small amounts of money was inconvenient and a time-consuming process. All that changed with the launch of UPI in 2016. It brought a massive shift how Indians handle money. UPI allows instant 24 by7 bankto bank transfers using just a

52:16 mobile phone. You need not even have the mobile account number of the person. A simple UPI ID or the QR code is enough. Today even 5 rupee can be paid digitally. From street wonders to supermarkets, from rural towns to metro cities, digital payments have become a part of everyday life. UPI has empowered millions and millions of people making payments faster, safer and more transparent. India now leads the world in digital payments, payment volumes and UPS is a shining example of how digitalization thank you how digitalization can take

53:03 can touch the lives of millions of people at the grassroots improving the financial inclusion and building digital economy. You all must have heard about Jeff Bisos. He didn't build just Amazon. He created Amazon web services. It's a cloud computing platform provided by Amazon, the backbone of the modern digital economy. Amazon is a logistics and automation marvel powered by deep engineering. The key message here is you all should think like a system designer. Understand how you are how your technical inputs fit into the broader digital experience. Now let's talk about something on industrial revolution.

53:50 We all know there were four industrial revolutions. First industrial revolution started somewhere late 1700s and spanning over for the early 1800s also where the mechanization was the focus. The key invention was steam engine. What changed? It shifted the manual labor to machines in industries like textiles and iron. What is the impact? Factories replaced cottage industries. Transportation improved railways and steamships. The second industrial revolution started in late 1800s to early 1900s. The focus was mass production. What was the key invention? Electricity, telegraph, telephone. What changed? Rise of large

54:39 scale manufacturing, faster communication, electric power made industries more efficient. What was the impact? Growth of cities, job creation, birth of consumer culture. We all know we had third industrial revolution in the mid of 20th century. The focus was automation and electronics. The key inventions are computers, semiconductors and internet. What changed? Introduction of automation in manufacturing. Digital communication started. Impact shift to knowledge based economies. Globalization of business and services. Now you all agree that we are

55:24 in the fourth industrial revolution with focus on smart and connected systems. What are the key technologies going on right now? artificial intelligence, machine learning, internet of things, robotics, big data, blockchain, 3D printing, AR, VR and the list is endless. And what is changing today? Merging of physical, digital and biological systems. Machines are becoming intelligent and they are even threatening the human intellectual levels. What is the impact? personalized healthcare, smart cities, automated vehicles, intelligent manufacturing, remote work, and it goes on. Cyber

56:11 physical systems are the future. Devices can talk to each other through IoT, Internet of Things. Data is secured via blockchain. Manufacturing is becoming autonomous with robots and AI. This is not a scientific fiction nowadays. A civil engineer must learn to read sensor data from bridges for understanding structural health monitoring. A mechanical engineer must understand the digital twins in factory floors. Biotech and AI are making are merging to revolutionalize the healthcare. We all know about Elon Musk. He brought together or he brings together aeronautical mechanical engineering through SpaceX, electrical systems

56:57 through Tesla, neuroscience through Neuralink and AI through XAI in one ecosystem. So what is the key message here for the young freshers? Don't limit yourself to your own silo. Learn how systems interact. Be a convergence thinker. So we talked about digitalization. Let's talk about learning. We all studied schooling done, higher secondary done, getting admitted into a professional college. But whether your learning is going to stop today or in next four years, no. Let us talk about the 1% rule. Improving just 1% every day compounds to a 37x

57:46 improvement over a year. Tools like Corsera, NPEL, Edex, POD cast, YouTube channels allow you to upskill anywhere, anytime. You don't need a classroom or textbook anymore. That doesn't mean that you you can bunk or cut classes. The classrooms teach you the basics and fundamentals. Whether it is coding, design, artificial intelligence or soft skills, knowledge is everywhere. Just be curious, stay hungry and make learning a daily habit. Our principal was mentioning about habit. So make learning a daily habit. In this

58:33 fastch changing world, lifelong learners will lead the way. Bill Gates takes regular think weeks to isolate himself and read for days together. That focus and continuous learning has shaped his legacy. So freshers and the young engineers, the key message here is your degree is your foundation only. I repeat your degree is your foundation not your ceiling. M learning a lifestyle and it is not an obligation. We talked about learning. Let's talk about something unlearning and then relearning also. Okay. The technology what you learn in the second year may be

59:20 outed by the time you are completing the course and then getting out of the college. Engineering is very very dynamic. You must regularly unlearn outdated assumptions and relearn new frameworks. This mindset is critical for innovation. To grow, you must let go of the old and embrace the new. Unlearning is not forgetting. I repeat, unlearning is not forgetting. It is the courage to stay relevant. Relearning is not starting over. It is only leveling up. What is the gap? Fill the gaps by relearning. Mahatma Gandhi constantly refined his strategies from

1:00:06 law to politics to grassroots organizing. He evolved by questioning his own beliefs. The key message here is challenge the conventional wisdom. Stay humble enough to accept when you are wrong. Stay humble enough to accept when you are wrong. Adaptability starts with unlearning. So you you are learned, you have unlearned, you have relearned but how to excel in an industry or organization. See with your knowledge you may write the best code or design the safe durable long strong structures but if if you cannot communicate well if you cannot manage stress or if you cannot lead a

1:00:54 team you will be plateaued. Emotional intelligence in involves self-awareness, empathy, resilience and collaboration. In the past, success was often linked to IQ, intelligent coefficient. The shape, the sharper your mind, the better your grades, the more promising your carrier. But today in the world of collaboration, innovation and leadership, IQ alone is not enough. There comes the emotional coefficient or emotional intelligence. What is EQ? It is the ability to understand your own emotions, recognizing what triggers them, manage them wisely and equally

1:01:40 important is to understand others, empathize, respond and respond thoughtfully. Why it matters? Because today we are talking about AI ML. Machines may outperform us in logic but only humans can connect, feel, inspire and build trust. So as future engineers don't just develop your skills, develop your self-awareness. Barack Obama is a celebrated one person. You all understand he is celebrated not just for his intelligence but for his empathy, calm demeanor and the ability to connect and unite with people. So the key message

1:02:26 here is listen more than you speak. I repeat, listen more than you speak. Reflect before reacting. Build your own emotional toolkit. So we talked about learning. We talked about how to balance our emotions. But you have to also give food for your brain. Reading is brain food. It sharpens focus, builds perspective, deepens knowledge. Don't just read engineering books alone. Explore economics, psychology, history, philosophy. This crossd disciplinary exposure is what

1:03:12 makes the innovators. Have you ever wondered how an IA is officer can handle animal husbandry today and tomorrow information and broadcasting? It's not magic. It is a mindset. And that mindset is built through reading widely across subjects, across disciplines and getting different perspectives about different areas of field. Reading expands your cognitive muscles. It helps you to connect the dots, see the patterns, and make better decisions. It's how an IAS officer adapt quickly, think clearly, and lead confidently. No matter in which domain he is working. As

1:03:57 future engineers, leaders, and innovators, read beyond your syllabus. A curious mind is never out of place. Warren Buffett says his best decisions come from informed reading and quiet reflection. The key message here is read to lead. I repeat, read to lead. Make it part of your daily ritual. Make it a habit as the principal said. But after doing all these things, will it help to grow in the organization or in the industry? It will not help if you are having rigid thinking in your mind. You should have the flexibility. Rigid thinking blocks growth. The world

1:04:44 is changing too fast to hold on to outdated methods and roles. You might start in your field as hardware engineer and then you may move into user experience. Your passion might take you from mechanical design to product strategy. In today's world, the technology is everywhere. AI, ML, I am repeating a IML because that is the order of the day. Coding are no longer the domains of just software engineers. A civil engineer now writes Python scripts to automate structural design. A doctor uses artificial intelligence to detect early stage cancer. A mechanical engineer builds

1:05:30 digital twins to simulate factory platforms. Everyone is wearing different helmet, different hats. The line between the disciplines are fading today. So to thrive in this world, we need to have flexibility of mindset. The ability to learn, adapt, unlearn and relearn. Steve Jobs combined calligraphy, spirituality, and computer engineering to create products that were both powerful and beautiful. The key message here is be open. I repeat, be open. Say as to new opportunities even if they seem irrelated to your branch. Just to

1:06:15 take me as an example, I graduated as a B civil engineer from 1991 and moved on to a project in Baramati near Maharashtra as a site engineer. My passion was to become a design engineer. So I opted for it. Management was kind enough to transfer me to the design department. I involved in more than 30 projects as they were mentioning about. But there was an opportunity for me to go as a business development manager overseas. I was there in USA for almost two two and a half years doing business development for export engineering. Then I came back. There was an opportunity for me to look the environmental projects the BC kind of projects or nuclear projects. I grabbed it. Then my management was

1:07:01 asking me can you be a key account manager for one of the most important client in the IT industry Cognizant. For almost 3 years I was the key account manager for cognizant jobs and we were doing about five campuses across the country and then completed the jobs with decent profitability. Later they thought about why can't we put niran into a corporate center looking into strategy part of it. So I moved on to a civil IC for heading the corporate center where the strategies have to be merged. We used to go with Luxas in Lassin Tubro. Luxia 1620 2016 Luxia 20 2021 2026 and now we are preparing our Luxia for 2031. At that point of time when I became a

1:07:46 corporate center head we were handling Luxia 2021. So from a site engineer to the designer to the business development manager to the key account manager I became a strategy person. Later there was an opportunity for me to move to Mumbai from Chennai taking care of city infrastructure development project as a segment head there you have to go and do put your hands into the project and get the get the job done I opted for it the next one what the thanks for the nice introduction when she was mentioning about the Asia's second largest laboratory that was an opportunity for me which was available in the Mumbai Amadabad highspeed rail project we were trying we were doing a 250 km ter project still it's going on there for the entire 250 250 kilometers

1:08:34 we were supposed to do bore holes at every 100 m centers 2450 bore holes were to be done for about 40 m and at every 1 m we have to take the samples and we need to do the test the samples we were supposed to test about one lakh samples and we scouted around in the whole of the Whatever equipments they were having in these geotechnical laboratories, they were having one consolidation equipment, two triacial equipments, that's it. So what how we are going to do this mammoth scale? We decided to like a shed like this we established in Surat. We recruited about 180 technicians plus two students, ITI poly technic

1:09:22 students. We recruited them from Kanyag to Kashmir. They don't know anything about civil engineering. They don't know anything about geotechnical. They don't know anything about physical properties. They don't know anything about consolidation. We picked about 20 engineers from Chennai, geotechnical engineers from our own department. Put them in sur train these people because repeatedly you have to do some plasticity index test or whatn not. Whatever test, liquid limit test, plastic limit test, everything you have to do, you teach them. They were trained the plus two pass guys, diploma pass guys, IT plus guys were trained for about 15 days and then we have put them into the shed. They were able to complete it in a record period of 10 months time. We were able to do that. So

1:10:08 opportunities are plenty and now I am hitting the competency cell. We are creating the future Ben strength. Now people are talking about metro projects to come in, Maduray etc. We are already doing it in Patna. We are doing it in Agra. We are doing almost 60% of the Chennai motor projects. So we need bench strength. We need future strength available. How many people are there with the knowledge of pre-casting? How many people are there who can do the erection? So I have taken the responsibility of training these people so that Lasser and Tubro will have sufficient number of people when the tire 2 tire three cities are going to come up with metro projects. So what I'm trying to emphasize here is look for new opportunities even if they seem to be no way relevant. I am a civil engineer. I'm a structural engineer. They asked me to

1:10:55 go to business development. I opted for it. Then they came and told why can't you establish a laboratory at Surat for geotechnical? I opted for it. Today I'm doing developing the bench strength for the future for lass and tubro. It's all right. These are all can be done by individuals. But whether everything can be done by individuals definitely not. Great engineering problems are solved only in teams. Autonomous vehicles, smart cities, space missions, none of them were built by one person. So you have to connect with people and you have to build network, share the knowledge and help others. Look at the auto industry. Susiki and Toyota once competitors now contribute for collaborate on hybrid technology and

1:11:42 shared platforms. Together they innovate faster, reduce costs and reach and reach wider markets. From science to business, collaboration brings fresh ideas, shared strengths and multiplied impact. The future belongs to those who collaborate not just compete. Chundra and three by ISRO many of our alumni were there is a triumph of collaboration. Engineers across every discipline contributed to its success. So friends, the key message here is innovation is a team sport. Don't compete to win, collaborate to grow. Don't compete to win. Collaborate to grow. We all talked about learning,

1:12:30 relearning, unlearning, reading emotionally. how we can be strong and how to collaborate at all the after all this. You agree right? Physical fitness directly impacts mental performance. Regular exercise improves concentration, energy, mood and sleep. Our brain is an organ. It needs a healthy body to function well. Physical movement refreshes the brain, improves mood and boosts creativity. So walk, run, stretch, breathe because

1:13:17 when the body moves, the mind flows. Admiral William Mcraman emphasized the importance of physical discipline in his famous make your bed speech. Starting your day with a small act of order sets the tone. So friends, the key message here is your health is your foundation. You can't build great systems if your own if your own system is breaking down. Now principal also was talking about the attitude of never giving up. Small beginnings can create legends. Big dreams often have humble beginnings.

1:14:03 Engineers can feel overwhelmed by where they start. Oh, I have completed my engineering graduation. But history shows that persistence is the game changer. Take example of our Indian cricket team. Sauro Gangali, former Indian cricket captain. He took over when Indian cricket was in shambles. But he didn't back down. With bold decisions and an unshakable belief, he fused courage and self-belief into the team. His leadership gave rise to the new team India that played to win, not just to participate. Or consider Mahendra Mahendra.

1:14:49 Who would have thought an Indian brand could stand shoulderto-shoulder with global giants like Range Rover or Jeep? But they believe, persevered and today their SUVs like SUV 700 and Scarpio N are world class. From utility vehicles, they persevered and become a luxury SUV manufacturers. That is the power of never giving up. Remember it is not the setbacks that define you but your comeback. Lamborghini started with tractors. LG was once a soap manufacturer. Even Google began in a garage. Infosys was started in Pune in a 2BHK apartment. L&T

1:15:38 was started by two Danish engineers Hulk Henning Lassen and Surin Christian Tubro in the Mumbai dockyards in 1938. Today we are n we have 93 subsidiaries, five associate companies, 27 joint ventures and 35 jointly held operations operating across basic and heavy engineering, construction, reality, manufacturing of capital goods, information technology and financial services with a revenue of 2K 55,000 cr plus. So everything has got a small beginning and it is your attitude is the one which will take you where you want to be. So to summarize I would like to reiterate the 12 commandments which will make you

1:16:24 employable and propel your growth in the industry. Engineers must learn to combine traditional expertise with emerging technology. Digital fluency is now a core engineering skill. Learn how AI and ML are shaping your field. You don't need to become a data scientist, but you must understand how data and algorithm algorithms impact your domain. Think like a system designer. Understand how your technical input fits into the broader digital experience. Don't limit yourself to your silo. Learn how systems interact. Be a convergent thinker. Your degree is your foundation.

1:17:11 I repeat, your degree is your foundation, not your ceiling. Make learnings a lifestyle, not an obligation. Challenge the conventional wisdom. Stay humble enough to accept when you are doing wrong. Adaptability starts with unlearning. Listen more than you speak. Reflect before reacting. Build your emotional kit. Read to lead. Make it part of your daily ritual. Be open. Say yes to new opportunities, even if they seem to be unrelated to your field. Innovation is a team sport. Don't compete to win. Collaborate to grow.

1:17:57 Your health is your foundation. You can't build great systems if your if your own system is breaking down. Last but not the least, don't underestimate small starts. What matters is progress, grit, and consistency. Dear students, after graduation, the opportunities are plenty. You can offer a job in your own core engineering field. You can pursue higher studies. You can get into research field. You can look for opportunities in business schools, Indian engineering services, civil services, armed forces are the fields where you can always look upon or you can start your own business and become

1:18:44 an entrepreneur. Now you might ask which path should I choose? This may be the question running into your minds. Here is my answer. There is no one right path. I repeat, there is no one right path. But there is a right path for every one of you. Ask yourself, what excites me? Am I passionate about technical work or managing people? Am I ready to learn new things continuously? Do I enjoy structured systems or do I building from scratch? Whatever you do, whatever you do, don't follow the crowd blindly. Don't follow

1:19:32 the crowd blindly. Reflect, explore, make mistakes early in the early period of your career. Please do make mistakes and learn from the mistakes. Dear students, last but not the least to talk something about how you can behave in the next four or five years. principal was talking about it repeatedly for more than 10 to 12 minutes on the subject. The institute cannot do moral policing. I repeat the institute cannot do moral policing. You are free to do whatever you like to do. You are free to do whatever you are you would like to do. But think before you act. Whatever you do whether it will bring

1:20:17 credit or bad name to you. Will your parents be proud of you knowing what you did or what you acted? As a parent, this is my sincere advice to you all. I spoken almost for about 40 minutes. Don't scare that how he is able to speak this like this. In 1991, I was also like one among you. I came in a bicycle to join the first year graduation program. Many of you have come with parents. I have not come with my parents that day. Even Shivakumar didn't come with his parents on that day. We were all standing in one corner. What to do? How to do? But today he is the HOD. I am somewhere in Lasser and Tubro. So

1:21:04 don't have any inhibitions in your mind. Think that everyone in this campus can excel to greater heights. Okay, keep that in mind. and wishing you all the very best. I once again wish you all the very best in the years ahead and all success in whatever you would like to pursue in your career. I thank the management of PSD Tech for giving me this wonderful opportunity to address the young minds at the start of their exciting journey in the field of engineering. Thank you. Thank you sir. Your words have sparked motivation and set the right tone for the academic journey of our firstear

1:21:50 students. We sincerely thank you for your words of inspiration. May I now invite our principal to present a momentto esteemed chief guest as a guesture of our heartfelt appreciation. [Music] The journey of each student at PSG College of Technology is shaped and supported by the institution's key academic and administrative bodies. To help you gain a clear picture of the opportunities ahead, particularly in career development, I now invite Dr. R.

1:22:37 Natrajan Dean placement and training to

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