The Religious Affairs Ministry has said that it expects I Gusti Bagus Sugriwa State Hindu University (UHN) in Bangli, Bali, to become a good model for Hindu education in Indonesia.
"UHN, which has grown from Balinese local wisdom, is expected to become an educational institution that guards local wisdom," said I Nengah Duija, the ministry's director general of Hindu community guidance, on Friday.
He added that with its educational pattern based on Hindu, UHN can become a campus that instills Hindu values with local wisdom
The third anniversary of UHN, which was themed "Jana Uriping Bhuwana", was attended by rectors, officials, and representatives from the ministry and other institutions as well as village heads.
In his speech, Bangli district head Sang Nyoman Sedang Arta said that the university has a very strategic role in accelerating development in the district.
It is hoped that the existence of UHN will have a positive impact on the Human Development Index (HDI) in the district, he added.
UHN's academic studies and research could contribute to every regional development planning program and help local governments in community empowerment efforts through community service activities, he explained.
UHN rector I Gusti Ngurah Sudiana said that the university is still very young, but its foundation has been laid since 1959.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that even though the university is young in age, it has been built and has matured through knowledge and experience, he added.
Sudiana said that UHN needs to keep improving its quality of education and services, which align with the central government's programs.
The university, formerly an institute in 2018, was declared a campus of harmony with the hope that its spirit would spread to all campuses in Indonesia.
The declaration was made because harmony is the capital for maintaining the unity of the multi-ethnic nation and a source of human development, which is needed to strengthen the country for facing any challenges.
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Translator: Adi L, Kenzu
Editor: Anton Santoso
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