The Offset Printers’ Association (OPA) has instituted a gold medal to be presented annually to the CUH Printing Student of the Year. It organised a print competition in association with the Central University of Haryana at Mahendergarh.

Uttkarsh Dubey, a third-year student of printing at CUH, bagged the BR Chowdhri gold medal and received a cash prize of Rs 25,000.

Also, certificates were awarded to all five top students — Anchal, Pilli Rishi, Rajeev Kumar Verma, Uttkarsh Dubey and Zacharias K. The award has been instituted in the name of post-press teacher BR Chowdhri. He hails from Hisar, Haryana and has been a post-press teacher for several years at the Northern Regional Institute of Printing Technology (NRIPT) before he joined the Haryana Agricultural University as a press manager in 1970.

The presentation ceremony was held on 19 October 2023 at Mahendragarh, Haryana. Tankeshwar Kumar, vice-chancellor of CUH was the chief guest and Rakesh Sodhi, president of IPAMA was the guest of honour.

Tankeshwar Kumar said that now it is the age of innovations and innovative ideas, and students can excel with the education given to them by the teaching institution, but there is a need for a collaborative effort from industry and academia so that students can get the opportunities of implementation of their ideas. At the same time, the industry can guide the structure of syllabi as per their requirements. This type of competition organised by the industry can boost the morale of the students and persuade them to explore more.

“We are the printing and allied machinery manufacturing association. We need ideas from the students for further development in the design and workability of the machines,” said Rakesh Sodhi. “The career prospects for printing students are plentiful. At IPAMA, we are always ready to assist in the improvement of the talent of the students in print.”

BR Chowdhri appreciated the efforts of OPA for organising the competition in his name. He invited the students to look beyond the books and be ready to accept the change in technology.

Kamal Mohan Chopra, president of the World Print & Communication Forum (WPCF) and chairman of the project, said, “Printing is the best invention of mankind to date; and it is one of the largest and most utilitarian industries globally, one that we are all proud to be part of. It is important to note that in today's world of sound bites and fleeting impressions, the here today - gone tomorrow culture, print outlives and outlasts."

In his concluding remarks, Ashwani Gupta said it is a wonderful occasion where future printers unite with printing stalwarts from across the globe. He thanked CUH for providing the opportunity to host this kind of competition for the morale of the students in print.