Sustainable development and the ‘smart city’ concept have been gaining traction in the country. To reflect the students’ academic knowledge and skills regarding sustainable development, Kantipur City College (KCC) organised a two-day ‘KCC Exhibit-2018’along with a seminar on ‘Smart City for Sustainable Development’ on July 28 and 29. 

The college has been organising the ‘KCC Exhibit’ since 2001. “The success of KCC’s first exhibition in 2001 has inspired the college team to continue the event,” Suman Katwal, chairman of KCC said.” According to Pralhad Karki, managing director of KCC, the last edition of the exhibition was organised in 2006.

“We were not able to conduct this programme in between because of various problems,” shared Karki. “We organised the programme after 12 years to build up the capacity of students to work for the society, environment and economy which are important components for sustainable development,” he added.

Vice Chancellor of Purbanchal University (PU), Ghanashyam Lal Das inaugurated the exhibition. Lauding KCC as one of the best colleges of PU, Das said, “There is a big gap between theoretical knowledge gained from universities and market demand. Though graduates have a certificate, they remain unemployed. All universities and officials need to think about filling this gap. For this, there needs to be practical training, entrepreneurship and internship.”

According to KCC’s BBA coordinator Ambika Deuja, such exhibitions help students explore their potential and provide a platform to interact with organisations and academic institutions.

The first day of the exhibition was followed by a concert graced by Nepali celebrities Jeetu Nepal and Astha Rawat. A seminar on ‘Smart City for Sustainable Development’ was the notable event on the second day. The seminar was inaugurated by the Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology at Purbanchal University (PU), Prof Dr Subh Narayan Pathak by watering plants. Speaking on the occasion he said, “The exhibition has provided a platform to share knowledge and ideas among students. These types of activities are beneficial to students and should be included in undergraduate courses.”

Senior Director at Nepal Telecommunication Authority, Anand Raj Khanal delivered a keynote speech on the importance of information communication and technology (ICT). “ICT is an industry in itself. The ICT is an important part of our daily lives. The government should make robust infrastructure, creating application and contents for the wider expansion of the sector. Wireless service is the solution to Nepal’s complex topography. So, the government should create momentum in achieving sustainable development goals,” he noted.

Likewise, Sanjaya Uprety, a programme director at Tribhuvan University also shared his ideas, experiences and knowledge about smart city. He said, “Smart energy is the key to a smart city. There is an exponential growth of urbanization around the world.  Technology will be the biggest revolution today after industrial revolution contributing to entrepreneurship, industries, education and every system.”

The other speakers of the programme were Manish Pokharel, HoD of Computer Science and Engineering at Kathmandu Univerity and Dilip Pratap Khand, mayor of Waling Municipality Syangia.

The two-day food festival organized by BBA students was another attraction of the event. There were altogether four food stalls offering various dishes. Lafing, lassi, chicken popcorn, chilled flavoured drinks, momos, chatapate and panipuri were some of the highlights of the food festival. The idea behind the event was to develop the planning, organizing, and monitoring skills of the students.