Governor Gehlot to Inaugurate 14th Convocation of Rani Channamma University Today

Rani Channamma University (RCU) in Belagavi is set to hold its 14th convocation today at the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha. The ceremony will be presided over by Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, while former ISRO chairman A. S. Kiran Kumar will deliver the keynote address. Higher Education Minister M. C. Sudhakar will be present as the guest of honour. 

This year, a total of 38,485 students—including 36,642 undergraduates and 1,843 postgraduates—are eligible to graduate. Among them, 39 students will receive gold medals for academic excellence, and 28 scholars will be awarded PhD degrees.

The university will also confer honorary D.Litt. degrees on three distinguished individuals: social reformer Shivaji Kaganikar, heritage conservationist Vinod Doddannavar, and police officer and writer Basavaraj Yaligar. Meanwhile, construction of RCU’s new 127-acre campus at Hirebagewadi, located about 20 kilometres from Belagavi, is nearing completion and is expected to be inaugurated by March 2026. The shift to the new location became necessary after the Forest Department objected to the university continuing its operations on reserve forest land. 

Although efforts to retain the current campus have been ongoing for more than two decades, the university has provided compensatory land in Khanapur and completed the required formalities. Work is still underway to preserve at least 72 acres of the existing 176-acre campus at Bhutaramanahatti.

The article also highlights several undergraduate rank holders across different programmes, such as BA, BBA, BCA, BCom, BSc, BPEd, and BSW, representing various colleges affiliated with the university.