The Hindu : Front Page : “Make education relevant”

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 06, 2007
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Front Page

“Make education relevant”

Special Correspondent

Address child labour issue: Pratibha Patil

— Photo: Sandeep Saxena

Recognition: President Pratibha Patil presents teacher award to Sidhnath Verma from the Government Navin Girls Middle School, Jabalpur, in New Delhi on Wednesday.

NEW DELHI: President Pratibha Devisingh Patil on Wednesday said laws alone would not help free India from the “curse of child labour.”

Addressing a function organised here to present national awards to teachers on Teachers Day, she said the problem of child labour could be addressed by making education more relevant.

Besides making out a case for inculcating life skills along with school skills, the President said it was also necessary to prepare children to fight social evils such as child marriage, gender inequality, addiction and other social stigmas. Also, the education system should strengthen the values of secularism, democracy, inclusiveness and pluralism.

The President presented awards to 314 teachers from across the country for the year 2005-06. Among the awardees were 11 Sanskrit teachers, three teachers of Arabic and Persian, and 12 teachers dedicated to promoting education among children with disabilities. The award carries a silver medal, a certificate and a cash component of Rs. 25,000.

Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development M. A. A. Fatmi underlined the need to reduce drop-out rates.

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