# Sonal Mansingh urges students to be lifelong learners 2026-08-22T09:43:02+00:00 | India | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Renowned classical dancer and former Rajya Sabha MP Sonal Mansingh urged students to pursue their passions with dedication and remain lifelong learners, during the Diksharambh - Induction Programme 2026-27 at DY Patil International University in Pune on Friday evening. She said her own journey had not been easy but she had never considered an alternative path. Mansingh stressed the importance of humanities alongside STEM education, stating that without 'rasa', everything becomes dry and crumbles. She called for universities to offer humanities courses and emphasized that all-round development requires perfect harmony and unison. DYPIU vice chancellor Prof Dr Manish Bhalla said the university emphasises innovation and incubation, aiming to produce job creators, not just job seekers. He announced the start of the School of Legal Studies, Governance and Public Policy this year and plans to introduce Hotel Management and Catering Technology next year. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Sonal Mansingh's call to embed humanities in technical education echoes a long-running debate in India about the National Education Policy 2020, which promotes multidisciplinary learning. With engineering colleges across the country facing low enrolment, the message that technical skills alone are insufficient may resonate with both students and parents. The key question is whether universities can translate this vision into curricula that attract students, especially as many still prioritise job-oriented degrees. The success of DYPIU's new School of Legal Studies, Governance and Public Policy will be an early test of this approach in practice. ## Coverage - hindustantimes.com Straight news agency style reporting with no discernible slant, just reproducing Mansingh's quotes and university announcements. This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: DY Patil International University, National Education Policy, Pune, Sonal Mansingh Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/sonal-mansingh-urges-students-to-be-lifelong-learners/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/sonal-mansingh-urges-students-to-be-lifelong-learners/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/