A day before the Teachers’ Day celebrations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday conveyed that teaching is not a profession but “jeevan dharm” (a way of life). Interacting with the 350 national awardee teachers, who will be felicitated by President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday, Modi said a teacher never retires and always endeavours to teach the new generation.
“If a society is to progress, teachers must always be two steps ahead of time. They need to understand changes happening across the world and prepare the new generation accordingly by arousing curiosity in them,” Modi conveyed through video conference.Modi said two of his wishes after he became the Gujarat Chief Minister were to meet his childhood friends and honour his teachers and now this seems to have been fulfilled. “The role of a teacher is very important in any student’s life,” he said.
Speaking in a lighter vein, Modi said he is sure the teachers, who will be honoured by the President, would not be affected by “Delhi’s airs”. “I am sure it would not happen,” said Modi, who has in the past referred to himself as an outsider in the Capital.The teachers also participated in the informal interaction and expressed their views on various aspects of teaching. Modi will be interacting with students on occasion of Teachers’ Day across the country, the announcement of which has resulted in controversies.
Modi later in the day also greeted teachers through an email message stating that it is a divine responsibility to them to guide and enlighten. “By according high status to the teaching community, India had once attained the status of Vishwaguru. We must once again accord such respect to the teachers and thereby regain that status where India becomes the beacon of knowledge for the entire world,” he added. The Prime Minister said the wheels of change have put India on the march towards Surajya.
Quoting the PM during the Teachers’ Award Ceremony at Mankeshaw Centre, HRD Minister Smriti Irani asked the teachers to continue to light up the lives of students and help improve them as a teacher within them never retires. Irani felicitated CBSE teachers and mentors for their contribution in the field of education and exhorted them to inculcate values in children and prepare them into good human beings.