Ensure freedom of speech on campuses: Kovind

NEW DELHI: In the backdrop of protests by students in many universities including the Jawaharlal Nehru (JNU) university in the capital, President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday, while addressing the closing session of the meeting of vice-chancellors of central universities, said it is their duty to ensure that “campuses emerge as spaces that nurture free expression and ideas”.

He said universities should play a leading role in addressing the specific challenges faced by the country. “Many of these challenges require creative and innovative solutions. It is your paramount duty to ensure that your campuses emerge as spaces that nurture free expression and ideas, where experimentation is encouraged and failure is not ridiculed but is seen as learning. In addition, universities should become conduits for exposing students to the problems faced by our people, our nation, cities, towns and villages,” he said.

He said,“through such exposure coupled with a push towards creative and innovative thinking, universities can prepare its students to take up research and innovation projects contributing to national development. For instance, while doing ‘Basic Research’ in science is important, so too is doing ‘Applied Research’ that can solve real-life specific problems, say of our farmers. And while theory lectures in classroom are important for students, so too are field projects in nearby villages and towns. We need to introspect whether we are doing enough in this regard. All of you should make a conscious effort to integrate communityoriented projects as part of your curriculum.” The President was the host of the one-day meet of vice-chancellors of Central universities of whom he is a Visitor.

Among those who participated in the meet were Union minister for human resource development (HRD) minister Prakash Javadekar and MOS, HRD, Satya Pal Singh among others.

THE PRESIDENT WAS THE HOST OF THE ONEDAY MEET OF VICECHANCELLORS OF CENTRAL UNIVERSITIES OF WHOM HE IS A VISITOR