Shri Shakti Educational Society celebrates 23 years of excellence in hotel management education!
Hyderabad, 24 th March, 2017: The Shri Shakti Educational Society , which runs two premier Hotel Management colleges in the city - Institute of Hotel Management -Shri Shakti (Affiliated to NCHMCT, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India) and Shri Shakti College of Hotel Management (Affiliated to Osmania University) celebrated its 23 rd Annual day with great fervor and pomp, on Friday at its premises at Begumpet. Prof. S. Ramachandram , Vice Chancellor, Osmania University, was the Chief Guest. Mr. D. V. Manohar , Chairman, Shri Shakti Group, presided over the function; Mrs. Satya Pinjala , Executive Director and Mrs. Yamuna Ranga Rao , Director, Shri Shakti Educational Society, were also present on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion Prof. S. Ramachandram said, at the outset I congratulate the faculty and students on the occasion of 23rd annual day of the Shri Shakti Educational Society. I am from engineering stream and first time I am coming to a hotel management institution. The Hon'ble Chief Minister while assigning me the vice Chancellor job said you should make your courses job oriented, that's the first message I got. But by looking at hotel management courses, I feel we already have courses that are very much job oriented, in fact I came to know that everybody gets a job. Whatever course one does the minimum expectation is one should get a job. I feel we should have similar programs across all the disciplines, in fact we have been working towards making all our academic programs job oriented, as all of you know this problem is nationwide one and not specific to Telangana stat. I was going through a report on higher education recently, it says only 18.1% of engineering graduates are employable remaining are not, only 10% of students from other courses are employable. Of course this excludes the hotel management, as all are employable. This is the sad state of affair in the nation. The problem is identified but solution is not worked out yet. The Governmentt and UGC are pushing CBCS - Choice Based Credit Courses, as part of that system there should be some courses which actually provide skills, your course of course is totally skill based, I am delighted that there is a course which is actually skill based and everybody gets a job. The dream of our chief minister will be fulfilled if all courses are like this, anyway we are working towards that. I know your job would be extremely challenging being in the service sector, quality of service matters always and your role is very important in rendering quality service. You will be meeting different types of people, from different countries, different regions, different religions, therefore your role is extremely challenging to ensure customer satisfaction, you have to adopt to the situation, learn continuously and have above all have positive attitude to provide the kind of service people expect, of course it will do lot of good to your career. He said, Osmania University is now completing 100 years on April 26, 2017. The University was established by seventh Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan and he issued a farman on April 26, 1917, if we take that as reference we will be completing 100 years on April 26th, 2017. The celebrations will be on April 26th, 27th, 28th and the it will be inaugurated by the Hon'ble President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee. There are whole lot of other programs including cultural programs, Alumni Meet, Vice Chancellors meet, followed by yearlong celebrations till April 25th, 2018. I welcome all of you to join in the celebrations. As affiliated college you are all Alumni of Osmania University. I request the management to celebrate the Centenary in your college too, he added.
Mr. D. V. Manohar , in his presidential address said, the practical skills is what matters as you graduate from the course and this college has laid special emphasis on imparting practical training. The skills that you gained here and your proactive enthusiasm will ensure that there will be nothing that can stop you, not even Mr Donald Trump. I want to share my own experience with Trump's hotel. This year January, I was in Washington to attend the Board Meeting of World Cycling Alliance and also to speak at the World Bank Group Headquarters Conference, Conference on Transforming Transportation in the World. Next to our hotel in Downtown Washington is the Trump Hotel. So we could not restrain our curiosity and dropped in one evening to take a look. At the front desk there was an Indian girl, we moved on, they have a huge lobby cum coffee shop cum bar, everything rolled into one, so when we were walking past the bar, there were three bar tenders, two of whom were Indians. We went to the Coffee Shop, the Coffee Shop manager is an Indian, so we came back to the front desk and asked the girl, since how long she was working there and how many Indians work. She said, I am here for the last three years and quite a few Indians work here. So I wonder if all the amendments Mr Trump is talking about, if he enforces them what will happen to the Trump Hotels. No hotel in the world can do without Indians, it is the Indians who make the hotels successful. we leave an indelible mark, our service standards are very high and we excel particularly in hospitality. So nothing can better you, the whole world is before you, so aim high and you will do very well in your career. As an Alumni of Osmania University I had great stint at the University and feel proud of it as it celebrates its centenary. As part of our responsibility we have taken up CSR initiatives. Well Indian cities have become virtual gas chambers, Delhi has already become one and to make sure our city Hyderabad does not become a gas chamber with ever increasing vehicle pollution level, we have taken up the initiative of smart mobility, pollution free mobility through cycling and we have promoted cycling in a big way, so much that Hyderabad already become the cycling citadel of India. Our objective is to transform the commuting culture in our city. A major project we have taken up in this direction is in collaboration with Hyderabad Metro Rail and UN Habitat, this is the first time UN Habitat has participated in such an event under this tripartite agreement between Hyderabad Bicycling Club, HMR and UN Habitat, in every metro station, there are 63 metro stations which are coming, we will have bike stations on either side of it, totally 126 bike stations. Also at every commercial and residential cluster there will be a bike station. This will ensure first mile and last mile connectivity to the metro rail commuters and it will change the contours of how we move about. The bike stations will be operational very soon with the commissioning of metro stations and you will all benefit from it, he said.
The students made a special effort to make the occasion memorable. The presentation of the food preparations, flowers and beverages was exceptionally creative showcasing their talent. The colourful cultural program by students demonstrated India’s diverse culture and was the highlight of the event. The performances impressed the guests and enthralled the students. Academic and Culinary high achiever students were awarded and felicitated on the occasion.
Felicitation and distribution of certificates of merit in due acknowledgement to the students, for their exemplary performance in different academic pursuits forms another segment of the programme. The function generally begins with playing of college anthem by a group of students.
The cultural activities performed by the student’s exhibit their hidden talent. They need an outlet to showcase their potential and creativity. The students of today are not shy as they are exposed to the environment. However, they need mentoring and proper direction to channelize their potential. The various activities performed on the occasion include plays and skits, songs under different styles, musical performances, and so forth. The students anchor different segments of the function with a view to work independently.
The audience comprising hoteliers, special guests, students, parents, faculty, staff, alumni, etc., enjoy every item of the programme with a great fun. Especially students are seen highly jubilant and appreciate the performances of their fellow students by putting their hands together. The gathering on this occasion is addressed by the guests with special focus on students to work hard and smart and be confident to face the challenges of real life. The programme ends with a sumptuous dinner, for all.
The function was attended by important members of the hotel fraternity of Hyderabad, alumni and parents.
