Centre and State Governments must accord highest priority for development of villages and rural areas: Vice President

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Vice President's Secretariat
14 MAR 2019 8:34PM by PIB Delhi

Centre and State Governments must accord highest priority for development of villages and rural areas: Vice President

The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has called for bridging the urban-rural divide and said that Centre and State Governments must accord highest priority for the development of villages and rural areas by creating all the basic amenities.

  Addressing the students of Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), in Nuzvid, Andhra Pradesh today, he cautioned that it was not good to have two Indias - one comprising developed urban cities and the other backward rural areas. We must remove the Urban-Rural divide, he added. Pointing out that people were migrating to cities for education, enhanced medical facilities and economic activities, he said that the facilities available in urban cities must be provided in rural areas also..

Complimenting the university for imparting high quality technical education to meritorious rural youth, he said education w the main instrument for socio-economic transformation of nation and lays foundation for building a knowledge society. It is important in today’s world for education system to produce holistic individuals, who are committed to strong ethical and moral values, he added.

Shri Naidu said that education means the process by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, and intellect is sharpened, as a result of which one can stand on one’s own feet. True education equips the youth to contribute to the material progress of the country, he added.

Expressing his concern that the present education system was merely producing students with degree certificates rather than individuals with critical analytical skills and innovative thinking, the Vice President said that institutions of higher learning such as RGKUT must prepare a large group of skilled and capable workforce who can drive the economy of the nation and help the nation to deal effectively with various challenges such as agrarian distress, rapid urbanization, growing energy demand, climate change, global warming, urban-rural divide and  economic disparities.

Observing that today’s world was dependent on the competitive use of knowledge and innovation, he urged the students of technology to strive for coming up with practical, low cost solutions to the problems faced by the society. "Our technocrats need to find indigenous solutions rather than look up to alien concepts and practices. As you all are aware, the sole purpose of Science and Technology is to make the lives of people better, the Vice President added.

Shri Naidu said that despite the advancement in technology and economic progress, a considerable section of our citizenry was still lacking access to essential resources. He advised the students to rise to the occasion and provide solutions to most pressing problems such as ensuring  potable drinking water to every household, eliminating malnutrition and making healthcare affordable and accessible.

Saying every institution must become a centre of excellence in providing cutting edge knowledge, Shri Naidu said that they should become the focal points in the quest for developing India into an innovation and manufacturing hub. Cautioning the students against lifestyle disorders, he urged them to practice Yoga and meditation for ensuring unity of mind and body.

Following is the text of Vice President's address:

" I am delighted to interact with students of Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT) here in Nuzvid today.

I am happy to note that the institution is imparting high quality technical education to meritorious rural youth who have been deprived of opportunities both in terms of accessibility and means.

I am also glad to learn that the institution, which offers Bachelor of Technology Degree in six engineering areas is focusing on holistic and all-round development of the students and preparing them to face multitude of challenges in the increasingly competitive world.

The University’s attempt to impart broad-based education, including soft skills, through integrated courses is laudable. I am happy to note that the University is focusing on imparting qualitative learning and enabling the students to imbibe the core values of integrity, respect for others and caring for environment. 

I am pleased to note that the program at RGUKT is built on a new model of liberal professional education with the focus on creating future leaders. I am told that the program is designed to ensure that the students are well equipped with life skills to solve problems rather than become specialized engineers with knowledge of theory. I am also glad to note that the program adopts the learning-by-doing paradigm of education through personalized mentors and intelligent tutoring systems.

My dear students,

Education is the main instrument for socio-economic transformation of the nation and lays the foundation for building a knowledge society. “Education is an investment, an educated individual will indeed serve the society”, said Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya.

It is important in today’s world for the education system to produce holistic individuals, who are committed to strong ethical and moral values. “Education which does not mould character is absolutely worthless”, remarked the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi.

Education means the process by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, and intellect is sharpened, as a result of which one can stand on one’s own feet. True education equips the youth to contribute to the material progress of the country as well as to maintain India’s cultural and spiritual heritage.

It is a matter of concern that our education system is merely producing students with degree certificates rather than individuals with critical analytical skills and innovative thinking. And most of the time, the students passing out of colleges do not possess employable skills. This situation has to change and there is a need for a complete overhaul of the education system to make it relevant to the present times.

Dear Students,

Institutions of higher learning such as RGKUT must prepare a large group of skilled and capable workforce who can drive the economy of the nation and help the nation to deal effectively with various challenges such as agrarian distress, rapid urbanization, growing energy demand, climate change, global warming, urban-rural divide and  economic disparities.

Today’s world is dependent on the competitive use of knowledge and innovation and as students of technology, you must strive to come up with practical, low cost solutions to the problems faced by the society. Our technocrats need to find indigenous solutions rather than look up to alien concepts and practices.  As you all are aware, the sole purpose of Science and Technology is to make the lives of people better. 

Despite the advancement in technology and economic progress, a considerable section of our citizenry is still lacking access to essential resources. This must change and youngsters like you should be in the forefront of bringing about a socio-economic transformation in the lives of the people. You must rise to the occasion and provide solutions to most pressing problems such as ensuring  potable drinking water to every household, eliminating malnutrition and making healthcare affordable and accessible.

Dear friends,

Indian economy is on the rise. We are the fastest growing economy today and set to become the third largest economy in the world in the next 10-15 years. Fortunately, India is a young nation with about 65 per cent of the population below the age of 35 years. We must capitalize on the huge demographic advantage by creating opportunities for excellence, innovations and inventions to thrive. 

To achieve this, every institution must become a centre of excellence in providing cutting edge knowledge. They should become the focal points in the quest for developing India into an innovation and manufacturing hub.

Premier institutions such as NITI Ayog have been engaged in nurturing and supporting innovation under Atal Tinkering Labs. Key social sectors of agritech, healthcare, clean energy, smart mobility, waste management and water resources are some of the areas undertaken by the organization to accelerate the entrepreneurial journey of the young innovators for creating a New India.

Reaching towards such new and Innovative India requires the participation of everybody including the private sector.

Diversifying research, establishing close linkage with industry and making the teaching practices relevant to the needs of the economy at national and global levels assume utmost importance in our endeavour to build nation that is led by innovation.

Dear students and faculty members, you must track the advancements in technologies and keep abreast of them. New domains such as the Big-Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Geo spatial mappings can provide solutions to various problems from agriculture to optimum utilization of renewable energy sources. 

In our quest to achieve sustainable, viable and a healthy nation, we must accelerate our efforts to find solutions that are not only affordable and accessible but should be scalable to help the sizable population.

Institutions of higher education must encourage the culture of excellence and expand their infrastructure to cater to more students seeking skills and knowledge. 

Institutions must train students with qualities of creative-thinking and problem-solving. They have to be supported in their pursuit to experience joy in discovering the unknown territories. 

Before concluding, I would like to caution you against the ill effects of modern, sedentary life styles. Lifestyle disorders of today’s youth are a matter of great concern. We are seeing that lack of exercise, unhealthy dietary habits, increased stress, consumption of alcohol and smoking are among the main causes for growing incidence of non-communicable diseases in the country. It is a matter of concern that many youngsters are getting affected by lifestyle diseases.

I urge all of you to practice Yoga and meditation to ensure that your body and mind remain fit and agile at all times.

I compliment Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies for imparting quality education to rural youth across Andhra Pradesh.

My compliments to the university’s faculty and best wishes to students for their future endeavors!

Jai Hind!"

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