Jammu, Dec 19: IIM Jammu drew strong academic attention on Friday as Dr. Vinod K. Paul, Member of NITI Aayog, delivered the headline keynote on Day Two of the Strategic Management Conference 2025, setting the tone for discussions on nation building and India’s long term development vision.
The address, held at the Mandapam Auditorium, was the main attraction of the day and witnessed full attendance from students, faculty, officers and staff. Dr. Paul outlined the roadmap for Viksit Bharat 2047, stressing that education, healthcare, innovation and ethical governance must move in tandem to drive sustained national progress. He urged academic institutions to maintain high standards and evolve as hubs of ideas, leadership and opportunity.
Earlier, Dr. Paul was received by IIM Jammu Director Prof. B. S. Sahay and took a tour of the campus, including the Nalanda Library and smart classrooms. He also viewed the Basohli Painting Exhibition and planted a Rudraksh sapling, reflecting the institute’s emphasis on sustainability and institutional continuity.
Prof. Sahay welcomed Dr. Paul and highlighted IIM Jammu’s collaborations with AIIMS Jammu and IIT Jammu, particularly in healthcare management education. He encouraged students and faculty to draw inspiration from Dr. Paul’s policy experience and leadership journey.
During his keynote, Dr. Paul spoke extensively on healthcare priorities, including strengthening primary healthcare, reducing preventable mortality, addressing non communicable diseases and expanding digital health systems. He underlined the need to reduce out of pocket expenditure and improve access to quality diagnostics and care through technology enabled solutions.
The conference maintained momentum with technical sessions on ethical artificial intelligence, sustainable business models, strategic decision making, entrepreneurship and public policy partnerships. A panel discussion on decentralized governance, focusing on Jammu and Kashmir and Farmer Producer Organizations, highlighted the importance of empowered local institutions and technology driven service delivery.
Dean Faculty and Research Prof. Jabir Ali highlighted IIM Jammu’s work in startup incubation and public private partnerships and proposed the vote of thanks. Day Two concluded with strong engagement, reinforcing the conference’s focus on leadership, governance and inclusive development.
