Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday exhorted the youth not to fall prey to terror designs, imbibe and abide by such values as would make them emerge winners in any situation, and enable them to achieve anything they aim for in life.
Delivering the convocation address at the 30th convocation of Kurukshetra University, the Home Minister cautioned the youth against falling a prey to the terror designs of global fundamentalist forces.
The ancient Indian ethos is based on universalism and brotherhood, and it must be retained for the development of modern society, said he.
Differentiating between the youths working in IT giant Infosys and terror outfit Al-Qaeda, he said while one was working in the interest of society, the other was working for its destruction.
Rajnath Singh quoted Thomas l. Friedman, who has, in his book ‘The World is Flat’, compared Infosys with al-Qaeda. Friedman says Infosys has a global network, and so does al-Qaeda. Highly-talented youths are in Infosys and al-Qaeda. The difference lies only in their thinking, said the Home Minister while adding that one believes in creative thinking while the other believes in destructive thinking.
He told the students that the ultimate aim of education should not be to just get a job and make a living, but maintaining values. Convocation connotes completion of study for a degree, but not the completion of education, which is a lifelong process, he said.
Rajnath Singh said, In the Indian context, the convocation purports qualification of an individual to serve the society through knowledge and skills imbibed through education. World remembers people for their values and their service to the society, and not because of their wealth, might or even knowledge, he added.
He called upon them to draw inspiration from the rich heritage and feel proud of belonging to a great nation.
Speaking on the occasion, Haryana Governor and Chancellor of KU, Kaptan Singh Solanki said that education should imply using knowledge to bring about a change in life. He also called upon the students to acknowledge the contribution made by their parents, teachers and the society in educating them. And, after completion of education, it is their duty to pay back to them by making a contribution to the society.
At the convocation, the Governor conferred graduate, post-graduate and Ph.D. degrees on more than 2,000 students of Kurukshetra University. Besides, Rajnath Singh and Chief Minister Manohar lal were conferred Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) and Doctor of literature (Honoris Causa), respectively, for their contribution to the domain of knowledge and their service to the society.
On the occasion, the Chief Minister Manohar lal congratulated Kurukshetra University for being ranked as number one university in Haryana, and among top 100 institutions of higher education in the country in the NIRF survey.
Calling upon the university to continue to make strides in excellence, he acknowledged the contribution made by the university in the making of progressive Haryana and the nation.