Yes this was what most of the students believed to be their liveliest Republic Day in a long time. The 63rd Republic Day was celebrated with fervor and enthusiasm by students of IIM Raipur who conducted a day long activities to mark the event. The event began with a discussion on article by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam who exhorted Indians to believe in country once and told how far the country had come in these 62 years.
After the flag hoisting, Prof B S Sahay, Director IIM Raipur, highlighted how the institute has been working closely with the Ministry of HRD to develop a funding plan for IIMs. He highlighted the institute’s plans for the upcoming years and hoped that the students will carry the tradition of excellence forward once they pass out from the Institute and contribute towards nation building. He expressed his pleasure over the fact that some of the best companies of the country and from the world are now associating with IIM Raipur and the fruits of the same will be seen in some time.
The ceremony was followed by a cultural program which began with a classical rendition by Richa Akhil PGP 2010-12 on Hawaiian guitar. She also presented a classical interpretation of old Bollywood Numbers which was appreciated by everyone. This was followed by a skit prepared by the first year students who highlighted the effects of Television on the children. The skit showed how the innocence of the childhood was being lost and addressed contemporary theme s like attention disorder and early maturing of children.
This was followed by recital of patriotic songs by many students, the highlight of which was ‘Rubroo Roshni’ performed in an innovative manner by a group from first year PGP. The group also tried to explain the relevance of these songs when patriotism has been restricted to recital of anthem and cheering for Cricket Team. Students also recited poetry to highlight the same.
This was followed by energetic dance Performance by girls on ‘Des Rangila’ number. The song celebrated and cherished the idea of patriotism. The cultural program ended with all the students vibrating the atmosphere by reciting ‘Ham honge kamyaab’ and ‘Aa chal k tujhe’ songs.
The highlight of the day was Finals of the Inaugural Champions Trophy Cricket Tournament organized by the Sports Committee of IIM Raipur. The 20-20 match saw some spirited display of sportsmanship and skill by both the batches. The match saw commentary inputs from Nitin Kurien PGP 2010-12 and Abhinash Nag PGP 2011-13 who held the audience with their wit and insight into the proceedings of the match. The revolving trophy was presented by Prof B S Sahay to the winning team from the first year.
The proceedings of the day closed with a Constitution Quiz organized by the Quizzing club to increase awareness about the constitution and also bring out the lesser known facts of the constitution and brought out the rich story behind the constitution.
