Vice President exhorts students to join national effort to take education to the underprivileged

NEW DELHI: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu called for the participation of students in making education inclusive by making education accessible for the underprivileged people of the Indian society. According to him, the union government is making efforts to make education equitable, inclusive and accessible. He was speaking at The Lawrence School at Lovedale, Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu during a visit.

“We should be mindful of the fact that we cannot afford to let any section of society fall behind when it comes to education and socio-economic development,” Naidu said. The vice-president further said that education is "the most powerful agent of change" that can fuel the country’s development. According to him, education is necessary to leverage the rich demographic dividend of India and use it to India's advantage, as more than 65 percent of the country's population is under the age of 35 years, said a statement from the Vice President's Secretariat.

The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu during his visit to The Lawrence School, Lovedale in Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu today. #Education pic.twitter.com/cN5OTm1a3J

— Vice President of India (@VPSecretariat) May 18, 2022

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Naidu appreciated the students of The Lawrence School for taking up community initiatives such as rebuilding a settlement in tribal villages and helping villagers in flood-affected areas of Wayanad by reconstructing their houses and reconstructing a school. The Lawrence School is a 164-year old boarding school affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). It is located near Ooty in Tamil Nadu and is under the administration of an autonomous body appointed by the union education ministry.

During his address, he also spoke about the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020). “Once NEP is applied in letter and spirit in schools, colleges and universities across rural and urban India, it is set to revolutionize education in our country, making it more accessible and inclusive,” he said.

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Naidu spoke about ancient India's contribution to knowledge as it hosted centres of learning such as Nalanda and Taxashila. He mentioned the exploitation of the Indian economy and education system by the colonial rulers and asked students to let go of the colonial mindset. He spoke on the necessity of Indianising the education system and stopping the act of blindly following the west.