08 Feb 2019

St. Xavier's University, Kolkata celebrated its third Foundation Day on February 8, 2019. Hon'ble Governor of West Bengal, Shri Keshari Nath Tripathi was the Chief Guest and Prof. Parth Pratim Chakrabarti, Director of IIT Karagpur, the Guest of Honour.

The Central Library Building named after Fr. Pedro Arrupe, a former General of the Jesuit Order, was inaugurated by the Governor. The Arrupe Building houses the spacious central lending library and a reading room. It will have law and Management libraries respectively. A state of the art studio for the Mass Communication department is set up in the first and second floors of the building.

"St Xavier's institutions belong to a global education network. Jesuit education is known all over the world for its excellence and the high quality they have maintained," Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi, the chief guest, said. "St Xavier's University in its second year has 1,100 students on its roll. This is a fast growth. I applaud the Jesuit Fathers for their wholehearted work."

St Xavier's University will start a law school and a morning section for B Com from the 2019 academic session, vice-chancellor Father Felix Raj announced on the Foundation Day.
"We are ready to open our new law school from the current academic session. Our commerce students had requested us to start a morning section," he said. "We are prepared to start the new section, too, from this session."

The Xavier Law School will offer five-year integrated BA LLB (honours) and BCom LLB (honours) courses. The school will need the clearance of the Bar Council of India that regulates law education in the country.

The morning section in commerce (from 7am to 12.00) will have two classes. Classes in the day section continue from 10am to 4pm. The morning section at the university aims to help students who want to devote the latter part of the day to their family businesses and courses like CA and CS, he said.

Father Felix Raj said the university had started its academic activities less than 20 months ago. But the institution was "fast progressing" in "true Xaverian spirit", Nihil Ultra (nothing beyond), he said.
"We began an MBA course last year. It is growing steadily. The summer internship has been very successful at the business school. I am confident the university will continue to grow in true Xaverian spirit."

Prof. Partha Pratim Chakrabarti, director, IIT Kharagpur and a illustrious Xaverian, delivered the foundation day lecture on Science and Technology in Higher Education Today.
Governor presented the awards to meritorious students at the end of the function.