Telangana needs to be a global growth engine, and JNTU will power it, says Bhatti

Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said on Friday that Telangana should be a global growth engine and it is JNTU that is taking this engine forward in the road map of the state’s ‘Telangana Rising 2047’ vision.

Speaking at the launch of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Jawaharlal Nehru University of Technology, Hyderabad here, he described the institute as a ‘sacred place’ and ‘not just a university but a national asset that has produced thousands of engineers’.

“If a stone is thrown at Silicon Valley, it will fall on an IITian or JNTU graduate,” he joked, adding that the list of alumni is like a hall of fame, from ISRO to Google, DRDO to Tesla, public sector leadership to deep tech startups.

He recalled some of the distinguished graduates – G. Satish Reddy (DRDO), Tessie Thomas (Aeronautical Systems, DRDO), Avinash Chander (DRDO), Mahender Reddy (former Telangana DGP) and others – “thousands of engineers silently participating in the building of the nation”.

Started in 1965 as Nagarjuna Sagar Engineering College, JNTU is one of the first technical universities in the country and currently operates on a 100-acre campus in Kukatpally. Currently, 215 colleges and around 3.5 lakh students are part of JNTU membership.

According to Mr. Vikramarka, the institute has always offered support to the government’s objective of making the State an innovation hub through transparent entrance exams, ethical guidance to affiliated colleges and honest education.

He reiterated that the State government is on a mission to modernize technical education with Young India Skills University, upgrade ITIs to Advanced Training Centres, and prepare youth for the industry 4.0 era. Giving an update on the progress, he said that the government is at par with JNTU in setting up a Bharat Skills University.

He assured that JNTU-related issues such as land rental issue, leasing rent, property tax exemption and infrastructure renewal with an expenditure of ₹ 800 crore will be addressed.

He advised students to dream boldly, innovate without fear, and aim to be job creators rather than job seekers. He also warned them against overindulgence in cell phone scrolling and urged students to stay close to books, labs, mentors and opportunities.

Mr. Vikramarka expressed confidence that more than a thousand unicorn startups will grow in India by 2027 and Telangana State is ready to become the hub of this revolution.

He also suggested that core engineering branches should be strengthened through reforms in curricula, internships, industry partnerships and multidisciplinary learning, along with new technologies.

Advisor (Public Relations) K. Kesava Rao, Vice-Chancellor T. Kishen Kumar Reddy, TGCHE Chairman V. Balakista Reddy, Rector Vijaya Kumar, Registrar K. Venkateswara Rao and others were present.