ArdorComm Media Bureau
July 12, 2025
The picturesque city of Dehradun, famously known as the ‘School Capital of India,’ played host to a landmark event that brought together the brightest minds and change-makers from the education ecosystem. On 11th July 2025, ArdorComm Media Group successfully organised the ‘Education Leadership Summit & Awards 2025’ in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, under the theme: “Empowering Uttarakhand in Digital Era: Expanding boundaries of Education, Skill and Employability.”
This high-impact gathering was a testament to Uttarakhand’s evolving identity as an education hub, with major cities like Roorkee, Haridwar, Haldwani, Kashipur, and Pantnagar emerging as centres of academic excellence. The summit highlighted how education, alongside tourism and agriculture, is significantly contributing to the state’s economic and social development.
A Day of Ideas, Inspiration & Impact
The day-long summit featured over six high-energy panel sessions and welcomed more than 50 distinguished speakers, including government dignitaries, academic leaders, edtech innovators, industry experts, and entrepreneurs. It served as a dynamic platform for powerful discussions, forward-thinking insights, and collaborative strategies focused on preparing India’s education system for a digitally-driven and rapidly evolving future. The event witnessed enthusiastic participation from across the educational spectrum—ranging from K-12 schools to universities, engineering institutes to B-schools, preschools to edtech startups. In total, it brought together over 70 school education leaders, 100 higher education experts, 25 edtech and startup founders, 10 government officials, and 200+ delegates, making it a truly inclusive and impactful gathering.
Support from Esteemed Government Leaders of Uttarakhand
We are deeply honoured and grateful for the support and encouraging messages received from esteemed government leaders for the ArdorComm Education Leadership Summit & Awards 2025, Dehradun. The inspiring words from Shri Pushkar Singh Dhami, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, and Dr. Dhan Singh Rawat, Hon’ble Minister of Education, Health & Cooperative, have added immense value to the summit’s vision. We also extend our heartfelt thanks to Dr. Ranjit Kumar Sinha, IAS, Secretary, Higher & Technical Education, Government of Uttarakhand, for his thoughtful message. The support of Shri Saurabh Bahuguna, Hon’ble Minister of Skill Development & Employment, further strengthened the summit’s focus on aligning education with employability and skill development. Their collective encouragement reflects the government’s strong commitment to transforming Uttarakhand into a digitally empowered, education-driven state.
Industry Leaders and Keynote Speakers
The Inaugural Session of the ArdorComm Education Leadership Summit & Awards 2025, Dehradun, set the tone for the day with the theme “Empowering Uttarakhand in the Digital Era: Expanding Boundaries of Education, Skill and Employability.” The session began with a warm welcome address by Kumar Chandan Anand, Founder, CEO & Group Editor of ArdorComm Media Group, who highlighted the summit’s vision of bridging education, technology, and employability. The event was graced by C. Ravi Shankar, IAS, Secretary, Skill Development & Employment Department, Government of Uttarakhand, as the Guest of Honour, who shared valuable insights on the state’s evolving skilling ecosystem. The session also featured engaging addresses by distinguished Guest Speakers – Dr. Sunil Rai, President, UPES, Dehradun, and Gagan Agrawal, Head – Academic Partnerships (North & Central India), IBM Career Education – both of whom emphasized the critical need for industry-academia collaboration and future-ready learning models to empower Uttarakhand’s youth in a tech-driven world.
The first panel discussion, titled “Decoding NEP 2020: Driving India’s Education towards an Inclusive, Equitable, and Holistic Approach,” featured an esteemed panel of speakers including Prof. Manoj Kumar Panda, Director, Women Institute of Technology, Dehradun (Session Moderator); Dr. Prahlad Singh, Director, Shivalik College of Engineering, Dehradun; Prof. (Dr.) V. K. Banga, Director, Govind Ballabh Pant Institute of Engineering and Technology, Pauri Garhwal; Kritika Mansingh, Headmistress, The TonsBridge School, Dehradun; Dr. Nidhi Nijhawan, Founder-Director, Offspring International School, Delhi; and Lalit Rautela, Managing Director, Pioneers Academy Jaspur, Kashipur.
The second panel discussion, titled “Collaboration, Creativity & Compassion: Redefining Learning in the Era of Disruption,” featured a distinguished group of education leaders including Dr. Dillip Kumar Panda, Headmaster, SelaQui International School, Dehradun (Session Moderator); Arvind Mahajan, Chairman & MD, Spring Dales English School, Kathua; Raman Koushal, Headmaster, Tula’s International School, Dehradun; Cdr Monika Pande, Principal, Doon Global School, Dehradun; Anurag Singh, Director, Samar Study Group of Schools, Kashipur; and Rekha Negi, Director & Owner, Lakshya Public School, Dehradun.
The third panel discussion, titled “Smart Skills, Smarter Workforce: Educating for an AI-Powered & Tech-Driven World,” featured a dynamic lineup of speakers including Arti Dwivedi, Account Manager – North, Education & Government, Adobe (Session Moderator); Dr. Sunil Rai, President, UPES, Dehradun; Dr. D. B. Singh, Vice Chancellor, Haridwar University, Roorkee; Prof. (Dr.) Himanshu Aeran, Vice Chancellor, Ras Bihari Bose Subharti University, Dehradun; Prof. (Dr.) Shankar Ramamoorthy, Vice Chancellor, Jigyasa University, Dehradun; and Prof. Rajesh Bahuguna, Pro Vice Chancellor, Uttaranchal University, Dehradun.
The fourth panel, titled “Lifelong Learning in the Digital Era: Building a Continuous Upskilling Culture,” brought together experts including Siddhartth Singh, Director, Meritto (Session Moderator); Prof. (Dr.) Satyendra Mittal, Pro Vice Chancellor, University of Patanjali, Haridwar; Prof. (Dr.) P.S. Rana, Pro Vice Chancellor, Bhagwant Global University Kotdwar, Pauri Garhwal; Prof. (Dr.) Bhagwan Nautiyal, Vice Chancellor, Smt. Manjira Devi University, Uttarkashi; Prof. Dr. Bodhisatva Acharya, Registrar, Maharaja Agrasen Himalayan Garhwal University, Pauri Garhwal; and Dr. Manmohan Gupta, Dean-Academics, Subharti University.
The fifth panel, titled “Empowering Future Talent: Skills, Tech & Workforce Readiness in a Digital Age,” featured an expert group including Prof. (Dr.) Manish Shrivastav, Director, Quantum School of Business, Roorkee (Session Moderator); Prof. (Dr.) J. Kumar, Vice-Chancellor, Sardar Bhagwan Singh University, Dehradun; Bhupinder Singh Arora, Co-Founder & CEO, BFIT Group of Institutions & Guru Nanak College, Dehradun; Dr. Krishna Prakash Sharma, Vice President, B.S. Negi Mahila Pravidhik Prashikshan Sansthan, Dehradun; and Prof. (Dr.) Yograj Singh, Director, Shriram Institute of Management & Technology, Kashipur.
Industry Speeches
The Industry Speech titled “Changing Higher Education Landscape in India with AI and Quantum” was delivered by Gagan Agrawal, Head – Academic Partnerships (North & Central India), IBM Career Education, who shared valuable insights on how emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and quantum computing are transforming higher education in India.
The second Industry Speech, titled “From Credentials to Careers, Powered by Blockchain & AI,” was delivered by Naim Shekh, Business Head at TruScholar, who discussed how blockchain and artificial intelligence are revolutionizing the way educational credentials are verified and connected to career opportunities.
The third Industry Speech, titled “Teachmint Overview,” was presented by Vivek Mishra, Director – Business & Partnerships at Teachmint, who provided an insightful overview of Teachmint’s innovative solutions aimed at transforming digital education and empowering educators and learners.
The fourth Industry Speech, titled “Digital Transformation in Higher Education,” was delivered by Phillip Samuel Babu.S, Head of Higher Education Skilling, India & Subcontinent at SAP India, who highlighted the critical role of digital technologies in revolutionizing higher education and skill development across the region.
The fifth Industry Speech, titled “Making of the Digital Backbone of the Education Industry,” was presented by Ayush Kumar Saxena, Senior Manager at Meritto, who explored the development of robust digital infrastructure and platforms that are driving efficiency and innovation across the education sector.
The sixth Industry Speech, titled “Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS),” was delivered by Shri Nitin Bhatia, Executive Vice President of Siddhanta Knowledge Foundation, who shared valuable perspectives on integrating India’s rich traditional knowledge systems into modern education frameworks.
Roundtable Discussion
The RoundTable Discussion on “The Role of AI and Emerging Tech in Enhancing Learning Outcomes” featured a keynote address by Raminder Juneja, TGT Social Science, Children’s Academy, and was moderated by Kapil Jaitley, Chief Manager B2B Sales Delhi NCR and Uttarakhand, Samsung. The panel comprised an extensive group of education leaders and innovators, including Prakrati Dewan Rathod, Owner & Director, Banjarawala Dehra Public Inter College; Dr. Samarjit Singh, Managing Director, Saigrace Academy International; Sunita Rawat, Principal & Owner, Anunaad Public School Chandpur; Dr. Arun Pratap Singh Rathod, Owner & Director, Dehra Global School; Dr. Dillip Kumar Panda, Headmaster, SelaQui International School; Ankit Agarwal, Chairman, Doon Global School; Dr. Shuchita Gupta, Principal, The Indian Public School; Dr. Amit Sehgal, Headmaster, Saigrace Academy International; Navneet Bijalwan, Owner, Veer Arjun Scholars’ Academy; Raman Koushal, Headmaster, Tula’s International School; Mansi Mamgain, Vice-Principal, Doon World School; Jashandeep Singh, Director, Times World School; N.K. Bhatt, Chairman, Defence Public School; Pratibha Saran, Owner, Happy Home Montessori School; Dr. Tanuja Pokhariyal, Principal, Doon International Public School; Monika Arora, Principal, Doon Cambridge School; Roopa Gosain, Principal, The TonsBridge School; Soneyaa Kumar, Principal, Delhi Public School Vikasnagar; Deepak Saraswat, Principal, GRD World School; Ritwik Vijay, Director, ITITI-Doon Sanskriti School; Rajeev Singhal, Director, The Doon Yudhishtera Public School; Commander Monika Pande, Principal, Doon Global School; Ajay Kumar Dogra, Director & Founder, Doon Public Academy; Anurag Singh, Director, Samar Study Group of Schools; Sukhvinder Singh, Founder & Chairman, Ek Onkar Global Academy; and Shahbaaz Khan, Vice President, River Valley Global School. This robust assembly of educators and leaders explored how artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are reshaping educational practices and improving learning outcomes across schools in the region.
Recognizing Excellence: ArdorComm Education Leadership Awards 2025
The Valedictory Session of the summit was a momentous occasion that featured a heartfelt Felicitation & Award Ceremony recognizing outstanding contributions in the field of education. Graced by Dr. Anand Bhardwaj, Joint Director (Legal) – Secondary Education and Director – Sanskrit Education, Government of Uttarakhand, as the Special Guest, the session celebrated the remarkable achievements of educators and institutions. The ArdorComm Education Leadership Awards 2025, honored individuals and institutions making significant strides in advancing education and shaping the future of learning. These awards celebrated excellence in leadership, innovation, and transformative educational practices across diverse sectors—from K-12 to higher education and EdTech. Recipients were recognized for their unwavering commitment to promoting digital learning, fostering industry partnerships, integrating emerging technologies, and championing inclusive and accessible education models. By acknowledging these trailblazers, the awards emphasized the critical role visionary leaders play in empowering students and preparing them for success in the 21st-century workforce. This inspiring ceremony motivated all attendees to pursue further innovation and dedication throughout the education ecosystem. The event concluded with a warm thank you note from Kumar Chandan Anand, Founder, CEO & Group Editor of ArdorComm Media Group, expressing sincere gratitude to all participants, speakers, and partners for making the summit a resounding success.
Looking Ahead
The ArdorComm Education Leadership Summit & Awards 2025, Dehradun was more than just an event, it was a movement towards future-forward education, catalysing dialogue, action, and collaboration across all levels. It reaffirmed that Uttarakhand, with its rich legacy and dynamic educational landscape, is poised to lead the way in preparing students and educators for the digital-first future.
Adding to the celebrations, ArdorComm Media Group proudly marked its 4th anniversary, a significant milestone in its journey of driving meaningful conversations and innovations in the fields of education, healthcare, HR, governance, and media. Over the past four years, ArdorComm Media has emerged as a trusted platform for thought leadership and impact, and this summit was a fitting tribute to its growing legacy.
As ArdorComm Media continues its journey of building strong bridges between education, government, and industry, this summit stands as a symbol of what’s possible when vision meets purpose.
Stay connected, stay inspired. Together, we are shaping the future of education.
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Event Glimpses: https://ardorcomm-media.com/aelsa/aelsadehradun-glimpses/
Event Website: https://ardorcomm-media.com/aelsa/dehradun/