Lieutenant Governor addresses Balaji Foundation’s ‘Bharat Shiksha Summit’ at New Delhi

JAMMU : Lieutenant Governor Shri Manoj Sinha on Thursday addressed ‘Bharat Shiksha Summit’ organised by Balaji Foundation at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. Shri Brajesh Pathak, Deputy Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh also graced the occasion.
In his keynote address, the Lieutenant Governor highlighted the importance of Ethics, Values and National Identity in education and pointed out that Ethics and Values, guides us for the welfare of society and nation-building.
He said the deliberations and exchange of ideas during the Summit on overarching issues in education will explore challenges and opportunities and prepare a future roadmap for educational institutions.
“In the educational journey, students develop consciousness and their moral values become sharper. During this journey, students adopt life values like compassion, peace, truth, love, virtuous life, harmony and benevolence and collect all the experiences. All these physical, intellectual and emotional experiences together develop student’s knowledge” the Lieutenant Governor said.
He said the aim of National Education Policy 2020 is that students should become a living source of knowledge rather than a storehouse of memories obtained from books.
“National Education Policy promotes creative imagination, ethical values and a sense of determination to contribute towards building an equitable, inclusive and pluralistic society,” he further added.
The Lieutenant Governor asked the educational institutions to focus on developing personalities that are perfect blend of compassion and innovation.
“Three ‘H’- Head, Heart and Heritage- will help in this mission and they will also restore the broken moral link in the education system.
We need students who are proficient in algorithms, talented in their chosen field, sensitive towards social issues and also realise their duty towards nation building.
Our students should be a selfless individual as well as a skilled researcher, writer or artist, deeply connected to their roots. This perfect balance in personality could be transformative for students, educational institutions and the society,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
The Lieutenant Governor emphasised that the teachers need to integrate moral values with skills needed in the modern world so that qualities like strong character and intellectual curiosity can be nurtured.
“Without unprecedented inventions, moral values alone will have no value. But it is also true that without ethics and values, cutting-edge education and skills would be aimless.
There should be conversations and not monologues in the classroom. There is a need to link innovation and growth with the ethical values of the society and integrate them with the course curriculum,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
The Lieutenant Governor further called for encouraging hands-on, experiential and project-based learning. The young minds should be exposed to challenges of the real world. Now the time has come to take education out of the lab and into the real world, he said.
During an interactive session, the Lieutenant Governor also spoke on the educational reforms taking place in J&K, under the guidance of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, in the past few years. He said the innovative programmes launched in the UT have ensured inclusive and quality education for all.
“The talent pool within Jammu Kashmir is being provided with better opportunities. Dedicated efforts have been made to promote multidisciplinary learning, and skill development of youth. We have also actively initiated campaigns to bring dropout students back to school. Through Mission Yuva, we have prepared a blueprint to foster entrepreneurship culture at college and university level.
Schools, colleges and universities are functioning without any disturbances. Earlier practice of hartals, strikes, stone pelting and bandhs are things of the past now. Today, J&K, with its full potential, is moving ahead towards a prosperous and brighter future,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
On the occasion, the prominent personalities and institutions are also conferred with the Bharat Shiksha Samman for their valuable contribution in the field of education.
Shri Naveen Jindal, Member of Parliament; Dr Pankaj Mittal, Secretary General, Association of Indian Universities; Ms Rajshri Rai, Chairperson, Balaji Foundation; educationists, experts, heads of various institutions, teachers and youth in large number were present.