He was here to preside over the 25th convocation of Himachal Pradesh University.
A total of 448 degrees and gold medals were awarded, out of which 276 were women.
Vivek Kumar was awarded D.Litt degree, whereas Mohammad Sharif Shaheen from Afghanistan was awarded gold in public administration.
In his address, the Union Minister said India was known as the 'Vishwa Guru' since time immemorial due to knowledge and wisdom. India believes in universal brotherhood and peaceful coexistence.
He said the challenges in life become opportunities for those who accept them. He said that with launch of schemes such as Make in India and Skill India, there were ample employment and self-employment opportunities for the youth.
He urged the students to work with dedication to make India a five trillion economy in the next few years.
He said the Union government was coming up with new education policy to strengthen education system in the country and make education employment oriented.
State Governor Bandaru Dattatraya said the aim of education should be gaining knowledge along with character building.
He called upon the students to develop skills along with higher education, which would help getting employment.
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said the state was committed to providing quality education to students by strengthening the existing infrastructure.
He said the motto of the government was to make the state an education hub of the country.
Expressing concern over increasing tendency of drug abuse among the youth, Thakur urged the students to make campaign against the drug abuse a movement.
Union Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur, while congratulating the gold medal winners, said every possible support would be provided to strengthen the university.
( With inputs from IANS )