Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on February 19, 2018 said that education must mould a strong character among students and it should develop overall personality of an individual in a truly holistic manner.
“Education is not meant only for degrees and employment but it must also develop the overall personality of an individual in a truly holistic manner by enabling them to make informed choices on their careers,” the vice president said, adding, “At the same time, education must mould a strong character and inculcate ethical and moral values among students.”
While addressing the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations of R.A. Podar College of Commerce and Economics in Mumbai, the vice president said that education must empower and enlighten the youth, improve their analytical skills and make them to explore new vistas, discover and innovate.
“Education must not only be accessible but affordable too and it must empower and Enlighten people apart from providing employment,” he said, adding, “Merely adding more and more buildings without providing quality as well as inclusive education will not enable the creation of the ‘New India’.”
Calling parents and teachers to provide a stress-free environment to students both at school and home, the vice president said that it is unfortunate that many a time the parents fail to understand the mental stress their wards are coping with.
“Parents, teachers, schools and colleges have a huge responsibility in ensuring that the environment at home as well as in schools is de-stressed,” the vice president said, adding, “It is unfortunate that many a time the parents fail to recognize the warning signs or fail to understand the mental stress their wards are coping with.”
Saying that converting country’s vast pool of human resources into a ‘demographic dividend’ is a big challenge before everyone, the vice president said everyone must use it as an advantage to propel India’s growth trajectory to be among the top three economies in the world in the coming years.
“India is one of the fastest growing large economies with a predominantly young population. A big challenge for the country is to convert this vast pool of human resources into a demographic dividend and propel India’s growth trajectory to be among the top three economies in the world in the coming years,” he said.
The vice president said that the country has the chance to become the international knowledge hub again but to achieve that some of the formidable challenges have to be addressed.
“Today, India once again has the chance to emerge as a knowledge hub in the world, but to achieve that, we need to overcome many formidable challenges by fully empowering the vulnerable sections, youth and women through education, knowledge and skills,” he said, adding, “Literacy plays a vital role in overcoming various challenges, empowering people and transforming communities.”