DW BUREAU / PATIALA Prof Pushpinder Singh Gill joined his office as Dean Academic Affairs, Punjabi University, today. While acknowledging the support and greetings from different quarters, he said that he was elated to see that all employees and teachers had extended their full cooperation to him. Talking about the encouraging response on joining his office, he said that the most pressing challenge is to ensure the university's progress and offer the best learning environment for students.He asserted, "I want to provide students a platform where they can openly explore ideas and be prepared for jobs. My experience working with educational institutions in rural areas, as well as nationally and globally, has helped me to recognize the unique needs of different geographical locations and, as a result, to provide them with appropriate resources and especially ensure that our affiliated colleges and external centers are taken care of. We want to draw students from all over the world because we have a world-class faculty and a lot to give." Talking about the placements of students, he said that this is also a criterion of an educational institution's excellence, so his goal for the students is to be job ready and associate them with future employers while they are completing their course. To do so, we must immediately reactivate the placement cell. Keeping in touch with our alumni will also help us learn from their experiences and provide input that can help us make improvements as needed. (editor@dailyworld.in)