Dr Shashi Tharoor Addresses The 6th Convocation Ceremony At Poornima University

The 6th Convocation Day of Poornima University was held on 14th December 2019 amongst the congregation of graduating students, proud parents and faculty members. The ceremony was held in the University campus in Sitapura, Jaipur. On the Convocation Day, our persevering students could reap the benefit of their labour and determination in the presence of our esteemed Chief Guest Dr Shashi Tharoor, a Member of Parliament, an articulate orator, and writer.

During the event, Dr Tharoor addressed the congregation with his sagacious insights regarding the scenario of education in India.

Dr Tharoor congratulated Poornima University for being one among the illustrious institutes for higher education in India and its admirable vision of value-based education and learning. Impressed by the key fact of having 60% of women medal recipients among a 20% population of women in the University, Dr Tharoor congratulated all the graduating students for their achievements.

With his extensive knowledge of Indian History, Dr Tharoor called upon the impetus of education for the Indian society from ancient times.“Indian society has historically emphasised on the importance of education as one of the supreme objects of human existence while celebrating a strong foundation in imparting education through both traditional and non-traditional ways” he added.

Dr Tharoor further mentioned the famous six Indian Montessori’s in ancient India, the ancient equivalent of today’s University, for establishing a coordinated network of education. These ancient universities followed the guru-shishya tradition around 2000 years ago. Reminding young Poornimaites of the “Each One, Teach One” vision of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr Tharoor motivated students to become leaders and change-makers in modern India.

Stating the example of young leaders like Greta Thunberg, Malala Yousafzai, Sunita Krishnan, and Kailash Satyarthi, Dr Tharoor sparked a leadership spirit among the young Poornimaites.

Dr Shashi Tharoor then mentioned the facts of only a 16% literacy rate, presence of 30 universities and 700 colleges with an enrolment of only 4 Lakh students during the independence of India. To overcome this situation, India needed an Education Revolution, which could only be achieved by bringing expansion and equity in education, as per the vision of Jawahar Lal Nehru. However, Dr Tharoor also believes that a third “E” of Excellence should also be introduced in the education provided by Indian institutes.

He further said, while Indian youth is making history and our IIT’s are now compared with MIT, the need for integrating excellence and education is still felt among the plethora of institutes in many cities of India. Putting forward his belief, Dr Tharoor said “Our education system must add a 4th E-Employability to the catechisms of policy thinking”. This will enable India to transform the young, competitive, and productive workforce into a cohesive force driving the nation’s growth.

In the end, Dr Tharoor congratulated the parents and graduating students while giving his best wishes to graduating students who are now standing at the threshold of the next and the most important chapter of their lives. As advice to parents, Dr Tharoor requested the parents to allow their kids to follow their dreams and never pressurize them to follow their unfulfilled wishes.

Emphasising on the importance of education, Dr Tharoor also quoted Gabriela Mistral, “We are guilty of many errors and many faults, but our worst crime is abandoning the children, neglecting the fountain of life. Many of the things we need can wait. The child cannot. Right now is the time his bones are being formed, his blood is being made, and his senses are being developed. To him we cannot answer “Tomorrow,” his name is today.”