Hon’ble PM’s address at the Convocation Ceremony of Visva-Bharati University

Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji addressed the Annual Convocation of Visva-Bharati on February 19th. I along with the Minister of State for Education, Shri Sanjay Dhotre ji and Governor of West Bengal Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar ji also attended the event. 

Hon’ble Prime Minister while addressing the convocation quoted the poem of Gurudev Ravindra Nath Tagore on Veer Shivaji which inspired him and called for unity of India. The Prime Minister stressed that the students and the faculty are not just a part of a University, but also bearers of a vibrant India tradition. 

Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said that Gurudev named the University as Visva Bharati meaning Global University since he expected that anyone who comes to learn in Visva Bharati will see the whole world from the point of view of India.

According to Hon’ble Prime Minister, Gurudev made Visva Bharati such a place to learn, which can be seen in the rich heritage of India. He gave a call for assimilating and researching about the Indian heritage and working towards solving the problems of the poorest of the poor. He said Visva Bharati for Gurudev Tagore was not just a knowledge imparting institution but an attempt to reach the topmost goal of Indian culture, which is to achieve oneself.

The Prime Minister said Gurudev believed that we have to discover ourselves among the varied ideologies and differences. He said that Tagore used to be proud of Bengal but at the same time, he was equally proud of India's diversity. And it was due to Gurudev's vision that humanity thrives under the open sky of Santiniketan. 

Shri Narendra Modi ji praised Visva Bharati as an unending sea of knowledge in itself, the foundation of which was laid for experience-based education. He said there is no limit to creativity and knowledge. The Hon’ble PM also urged the students to always remember that knowledge, thought, and skill are not static but a dynamic and continuous process. He said responsibility comes with knowledge and power. Just as one has to be restrained and sensitive while in power, every scholar also has to be responsible for those who do not have knowledge.

Hon’ble Prime Minister also spoke about the National Education Policy and said that it breaks old restrictions and allows students to realize their full potential. National Education Policy allows flexibility in the selection of subjects and medium of instruction. The Policy promotes entrepreneurship and self-employment; research and innovation. 

‘This education policy is a major milestone in the making of an Aatmnirbhar Bharat’, said the Hon’ble Prime Minister. He informed that scholars have recently been given free access to lakhs of journals by the Government. This year’s Budget has proposed 50 thousand crores in 5 years for research through the National Research Foundation.

This Education Policy has made provision for the Gender Inclusion Fund that will give the girls new confidence, the Prime Minister said. The higher drop out rate of girls was deeply studied and arrangements were made for entry-exit options and yearly credit in the degree courses. The Prime Minister concluded by calling upon the students to find ways to make nearby villages Aatmnirbhar and taking their products globally.