Prime Minister Modi said that education is not only the foundation upon which our civilization has been built, but it is also the architect of humanity’s future. The Prime Minister referred to the Education Ministers as the Sherpas and said that they are leading mankind in its effort for development, peace, and prosperity for all. Shri Modi highlighted that the Indian scriptures describe the role of education as the key to bringing joy.
Reciting a Sanskrit Shlok which means ‘True knowledge gives humility, from humility comes worthiness, from worthiness one gets wealth, wealth enables a person to do good deeds, and, this is what brings joy’, the Prime Minister said that India has embarked on a holistic and comprehensive journey. Shri Modi emphasized that foundational literacy forms a strong base for the youth and India is combining it with technology. He highlighted the ‘National Initiative for Proficiency in reading with Understanding and Numeracy”, or ‘Nipun Bharat’ initiative by the Government and expressed happiness that ‘Foundational Literacy and Numeracy’ has been identified as a priority by G20 as well. He also stressed working on it in a time-bound manner by 2030.
The Prime Minister emphasized the need to adapt and use new e-learning innovatively and said that the objective must be to provide quality education with better governance. He highlighted the several initiatives taken by the Government in this direction and mentioned ‘Study Webs of Active-learning for Young Aspiring Minds’, or ‘Swayam’, an online platform that hosts all courses from Class 9 to the post-graduate level and enables students to learn remotely while focussing on access, equity and quality.
“With over 34 million enrolments and more than 9000 courses, it has become a very effective learning tool”, the Prime Minister added. He also mentioned the ‘Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing’ or ‘Diksha Portal’ which aims to deliver school education through distance learning. Shri Modi informed that it supports learning in 29 Indian and 7 foreign languages and has witnessed over 137 million course completions so far. Shri Modi also pointed out that India would be happy to share these experiences and resources, particularly with those in the Global South.
