I am delighted to be here in this special
function organized to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations
of Rashtriya Military School, Bengaluru. I congratulate all the cadets,
teachers, alumni, and staff members on this special occasion. Since it was
established in 1946, the school has come a long way and is acknowledged as one
of the finest boarding schools in the country. This region,
comprising modern Karnataka, has shown the highest examples of spirituality,
art, architecture, science, education, and bravery through
centuries. Karnataka has emerged as a leading centre of modern education and
technology. I am happy to100 note that Karnataka got the top rank
among all the States in the latest ‘India Innovation Index’.
Bengaluru has emerged120 as a globally comparable centre of
learning, technology and enterprise. I am told that in a recent report,
Bengaluru figured140 among the top five
venture-capital funding hubs across the world in 2021. Under the
guidance of the160 Governor and the
leadership of the Chief Minister, Karnataka has been making remarkable
strides. I congratulate the entire team of the State Government for the praiseworthy
achievements of Karnataka.
Ladies and Gentlemen, as we know,
Rashtriya Military Schools were conceived200 with the aim of providing quality
education to the wards of Army personnel. Later, the Schools were opened to
civilians. I am glad to note that Rashtriya Military Schools are truly
national in character. I am told that at present,240 cadets from 23 States are receiving
education in this school. From Jammu & Kashmir to Kerala, the cadets
here represent our unity in diversity. I am sure that this blending
has helped the cadets to learn and appreciate the280 culture, language, and traditions of
their fellow cadets. Today, Rashtriya Military School, Bengaluru can feel proud
of its rich heritage. The300 alumni of this school have
distinguished themselves as highly decorated military officers, eminent
judges, political leaders, civil servants, entrepreneurs, sportspersons,320 performing artists and achievers in many
other fields of excellence.
My dear cadets, it must be a matter
of pride for all of you that one of your distinguished alumni was
given the nation’s highest gallantry award, Param Vir Chakra,360 posthumously, for his courageous
actions and making the supreme sacrifice during a UN operation in Congo.
I have been delighted to confer Distinguished Service Decorations on
some of the alumni of your school at Rashtrapati Bhavan. I
am confident that400 the impressive list of the school’s
alumni will inspire you to follow their examples and serve the nation with
distinction.420 I am glad to know that from this academic year onwards, girl
cadets are going to get admissions into Rashtriya Military Schools across the
country. As you all know, starting this year, the gates of the National
Defence Academy have also been opened for girls. Our daughters are
breaking many glass-ceilings and setting new records in various fields,
making the480 country proud. When I
travel to different universities and institutes across the country, I
witness many instances of girls performing500 better than boys.
As the Supreme Commander, I am
happy to see the rising number of women in the armed forces, including
in combat roles. I am confident that the girl cadets, joining this prestigious
school, will contribute in defending the nation and play their role in nation
building. It is a happy coincidence that the Platinum Jubilee
Celebrations of560 the school are coinciding with the 75th
year of our Independence. I am glad to know that a cycling expedition
was organized by the school. Under the campaign, cadets and staff of the school
covered a distance of 1800600 kilometers. They inspired people to join
the armed forces and narrated stories of India’s freedom movement in
remote villages of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and
Puducherry. I compliment the school for such patriotic initiatives. I am confident that640 the school will continue to provide
holistic education to you and future-cadets, and inculcate in you, military
ethos and discipline. I am sure that your school will continue to
produce leaders with high moral values who will take India forward as a strong
nation. I wish you all a very bright future.
Ladies and Gentlemen, it is a pleasure to700 be with you all, as this convocation
is a landmark event in the lives of the bright young students who720 have earned their degrees and medals
today. I congratulate the students for their achievements. I also congratulate
the parents and teachers who have toiled hard to witness this day which is
so important in the lives of these young students. I attach great importance to this event, as it is directly
related to the future of our talented youth and thereby, to the future of
India. Only yesterday, I interacted with many Vice-Chancellors of
Central Universities and Directors of ‘Institutions of National800 Importance’ in the presence of the Union Minister of Education
and experts of higher education who are responsible for implementing the
National Education Policy 2020 and other related measures.
Education is the greatest enabler. The future of our840 country depends on good education of our young population. Therefore,
I try not to miss any opportunity that is related to promotion of education. I
remember having participated, in virtual mode, at the ‘Conference on
Implementation of the National Education Policy in Jammu and Kashmir’ in
September, 2020. When the Lieutenant Governor requested me to
participate in that900 conference, I happily agreed. Many of you may be aware of the
fact that the Lieutenant Governor came into the field of public service with an
illustrious academic career as an engineering student. I appreciate his
efforts for improvement of education in Jammu and Kashmir. I appreciate the
team of Indian Institute of Management Jammu, led by its Director, for960 taking the institute forward in line with the educational
objectives of the nation. As we know, the National Education Policy980 seeks to position India as a knowledge hub in today’s knowledge
economy. It seeks to make our youth equipped for1000 the world of 21st century while preserving our
ancient values which remain relevant even today. For India to become a global
knowledge hub, our institutes of learning have to be globally comparable. With
this perspective, a presentation was made on global ranking of higher
education institutions at the Visitor’s Conference I mentioned about. I am glad
to note that the number of Indian institutions in the global ranking is
gradually increasing. I expect new institutions like Indian Institute of1080 Management Jammu to quickly adopt global best practices
and aspire for higher ranking.
We are in an era of enterprise,
innovation, and value-creation. I have been informed that innovation
councils have been set up in higher education institutions in
almost1120 all the States and Union Territories.
India’s ranking in Global Innovation Index has improved from 76 in the year
2014 to 46 in 2021. Innovation and entrepreneurship strengthen each other. With
the convergence of technologies and opportunities, many start-ups have
become very successful and are being described as the emerging mainstay
of the Indian economy. Unicorns, which are start-up enterprises with
market valuation of one billion dollars and above, are proving to be1200 game-changers. These unicorns, most of
which are set up by young people, must be a source of inspiration for you all.
The mindset of being a job-giver and not a job-seeker among the youth of India
is one of the key factors in our country having one of the best start-up
eco-systems in the world. I feel very happy to1260 note that Indian Institute of Management Jammu, in collaboration with CII, is going to
set up a special1280 diversity cell for
helping potential entrepreneurs from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. I
am told that this is going to be the first centre of its
kind among the Indian Institutes of Management. I appreciate
everyone concerned with this initiative to promote entrepreneurship and
inclusion.
The establishment of Indian Institute of Management Jammu in 2016 marks the
beginning of a new chapter of higher education in this area. I am sure that
this institute will soon emerge as a major education destination for
students from different parts of the country, and even from other
countries. I am glad to note that students from 25 States and Union
Territories are receiving education from the faculty drawn from all over1400 the country. I am told that adjunct
faculty from countries like the United Kingdom, France, Brazil and the US are
associated with Indian Institute of Management
Jammu. I
am also happy to note that the Institute has tied up1440 with 15 prestigious institutions
in the US, France, Australia, Korea and the United Kingdom for student and
faculty exchange programmes. I have been told that the new campus of the
institute is targetted to be fully functional by November this year. I extend
my best wishes for the team here to achieve the target. I am glad to note that the educational
eco-system of this area is getting stronger by cooperation among the Jammu
based Indian Institute of Management, Indian Institute of Technology and All
India Institute of Medical Sciences. I am happy that these three institutes are
integrating and offering courses in which students from one institute can get
access to the other. Indian Institute of Management
Jammu has been offering dual degree programme with Indian Institute of
Technology Jammu. It is also starting MBA programmes in inter-disciplinary
areas with Indian Institute of Technology Jammu and All India Institute of
Medical Sciences Jammu.1597
