Manas Dasguta
NEW DELHI, July 15: After the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s advice to youths a few years back to open snack parlours for a living instead of depending on jobs, another bizarre advice has come from a BJP Member of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly to the students, open motorcycle puncture repair shops to earn livelihood insisting that college degrees would not help them earn money.
Stating that there was nothing to gain from obtaining educational degrees, the BJP MLA from Guna Pannalal Shakya said, “We are opening a “PM College of Excellence” today. I appeal to everyone to keep one sentence (bodh vakya) in mind that nothing is going to happen with these college degrees. Instead, open a motorcycle puncture repair shop to at least earn a livelihood,” he said at an event to e-inaugurate “PM College of Excellence” in his Assembly constituency.
On Sunday, the Union home minister Amit Shah had virtually inaugurated PM College of Excellence in 55 districts of Madhya Pradesh at a function held at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government Arts and Commerce College in Indore. Separate events were held in respective districts of Madhya Pradesh, including Guna. At the main event in Indore, Shah highlighted PM Modi’s vision for bringing in the New Education Policy in the country.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target to make India a developed nation by 2047 when the country will celebrate 100 years of Independence. NEP will play a major role in it. In order to become a developed nation, the foundation of education has to be strengthened and PM Modi has shown farsightedness by bringing in NEP that fulfils the needs of the next 25 years,” Shah said.
Shah further said the NEP would bring students at par with international standards while keeping them intact with their culture. He added that it focuses on quality and not quantity and provides an opportunity to students to think out of the box, thus ensuring their 360 degree development.
But Mr Modi’s own party man had so much respect for his vision for “360 degree development” of the students under the NEP that he junked all educational degrees to plead for puncture repair shops for a living.
Mr Shakya also had a dig at the mass sapling plantation events like the one organised by the MP government in the presence of Mr Amit Shah in Indore where a “world record” was created by planting more than 11 lakh saplings in a span of 24 hours. Without making any direct reference to the Indore event, Mr Shakya made only a cryptic remark, “people are planting trees but not interested in watering them,” apparently hinting that such events are held only for publicity and not really to care for environment.
Mr Shakya said one must first try to save the ‘panchtatva (five elements comprising earth, air, water, solar energy and sky) that forms the human body. “There is concern over pollution and environment but nobody is working in this direction (saving panchtatva). How long will we protect the trees we planted today and ensure they grow,” he asked while pointing out to what he claimed was rampant encroachment on government land along rivers and drains.
“People are eating anything without caring about side effects,” Mr Shakya added.
