President Pratibha Patil, who was awarded a degree of doctor of letters (D.Lit) at the 22nd annual convocation ceremony of Goa University Tuesday, exhorted students to desist from ragging, calling it a "crime against humanity". "Ragging in all our universities and educational institutions must stop. It is a crime against humanity and a shameful behaviour. Education must develop cultured attitude and social awareness, otherwise it is unrelated to life and its environment," Patil said.

The president also asked students not to rush for 'popular' subjects like commerce and management and asked them to study equally important basic science subjects at the university level and focus on research and innovation. "With 54 crore youth, India has one of the largest young populations of the world. We have a responsibility to ensure that they receive proper education," she said.