Prof Mahendra P Lama appointed Pro Vice Chancellor (saha kulpati) of IGNOU

Prabin Khaling, KalimNews: Prof Mahendra P Lama, widely known development economist and noted education administrator has been appointed as the Pro Vice Chancellor (saha kulpati) of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) for a term of three years. 

Prof Lama who was nominated by the President of India Shri Pranab Mukherji as his nominee to the highest Board of Management of IGNOU in September 2012 was unanimously approved by the Board of Management of IGNOU as the Prof Vice Chancellor in its 118th meeting held on 15 June 2013. 

IGNOU established by an Act of Parliament in 1985, is today the World’s largest University under the open and distance learning mode system. This University began by offering two academic programmes in 1987, i.e., Diploma in Management and Diploma in Distance Education, with a strength of 4,528 students.

Today, it serves the educational aspirations of over 40 lakh students in India and 36 other countries through 21 Schools of Studies. It has a network of 67 regional centres, around 3,300 learner support centres and 81 overseas centres in different countries of the world. With the launch of EduSat (a satellite dedicated only to education) on 20th September, 2004, and the establishment of the Inter-University Consortium, the University has ushered in a new era of technology-enabled education in the country.

The University offers about 490 certificate, diploma, degree and doctoral programmes, with a strength of nearly 420 faculty members and academic staff at the headquarters in New Delhi and regional centers and about 36,000 academic counsellors from conventional institutions of higher learning, professional organizations, and industry among others. In 2012 alone over 8 lakh students enrolled for various courses in IGNOU.

Prof Lama who served as the Founding Vice Chancellor of Sikkim University has been nominated to several reputed universities as the President of India’s nominees. He becomes the first Hillman to be appointed to this prestigious position of the Pro Vice Chancellor of this globally recognized institution. 

Prof Lama who was the Gold Medalist in 1979 and bestowed with the Life Time Achievement Award by St Joseph’s College, Darjeeling in 2007, was educated in Scots Mission Primary School, Turnbull High School in Darjeeling and Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. 

At present, he serves various national committees including as India’s representative in the prestigious South Asia Forum set up by the heads of the Governments of the eight SAARC countries in Thimphu in 2010. He also served as a member of the coveted National Security Advisory Board, Govt of India. He remains an active civil society member in Darjeeling.