Aazan Manzoor
Srinagar, Oct 2 (JKNS): Commissioner Secretary Higher and School Education Ram Niwas Sharma on Friday called for translating Mahatma Gandhi’s ideals into everyday educational practice, saying students must not merely study his life but experience and adopt his values through their daily conduct.
Addressing a gathering at SKICC Srinagar during a commemorative event organised on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, as per news agency JKNS, Sharma said Gandhi’s principles of truth, non-violence and peace continue to remain relevant and provide moral direction to democratic and social life.
“Gandhi’s greatest school was his own life,” Sharma said, stressing that while teaching students about the Mahatma, equal emphasis should be placed on connecting his life values with their everyday experiences and actions.
He said educational institutions should make activities such as school cleanliness, community service, respect for local culture, environmental protection and meaningful social dialogue an integral part of school life.
Sharma said the education and culture departments’ joint efforts to connect education with cultural values were important, as education provides knowledge to children while culture connects them with their identity, heritage and values.
Referring to students participating in activities based on Gandhi’s principles, he said their involvement demonstrated that they were not only learning about Gandhi’s life but also reflecting on his ideas.
He said Gandhi’s ideals could be understood in contemporary terms as making truth a habit, non-violence a way of conduct, cleanliness a value, self-reliance a source of strength and service a way of life.
“On Gandhi Jayanti, we should not merely pay tribute to him, but demonstrate our commitment to truth, cleanliness, awareness against drugs, dedication towards education and responsibility towards society,” Sharma said.
He also highlighted the continued relevance of Gandhi’s principles across the world, noting that October 2 is observed internationally as the International Day of Non-Violence.
Sharma called upon students and educators to carry forward Gandhi’s values through their conduct and collective efforts, saying the real tribute to the Mahatma would be to make his principles a living part of society. (JKNS)
