Some news of the students’ community shocks me and some questions automatically crop up. Who are responsible for their behaviours? Is it because of the political necessity?

How should one react when one sees the whole episode live? I heard the Uttar Pradesh governor suggesting the students to learn English too, if they wish to have ambitions of a good career after completing the education. “Exclusive Sanskrit education is beneficial only for those who want to become priests or Sanskrit teachers,”

T.V. Rajeswar was addressing the convocation of Sampoornand Sanskrit University in Varanasi. While he described Sanskrit as the “pride of India”, the governor departed from the text to remind students they also need to know English. “If you want to succeed professionally, earn Rs 2-3 lakh a month or go abroad… you must be proficient in English. If you only learn Sanskrit, you will remain cut off from the rest of the world and continue to live in the bullock-cart age.”

The students went out on rampage protesting against the statement and even demanded an apology from Rajeswar and his resignation. Where was the governor wrong? The students are ignorant about the reality of life, and must take advices from the older generation with open mind. No one can force it on a Sanskrit scholar if he doesn’t want to learn English. But when the same person faces an interview from, say a university of US for a Sanskrit teacher for Americans, he would never be selected if he does not know English. How will he teach Sanskrit to English knowing students if he does know English?

I don’t know how the same students would react once the recommendation of National Knowledge Commission to start teaching English from primary class itself is implemented.
And in Patna, I saw an irate mob of Patna University (PU) students belonging to different student organisations storming the PU office after breaking the main entrance gate as well as the inner gates. They did all for increasing the gap in university examinations. Bihar has already poor image about the sanctity of the certificates and degrees it offer. Why shouldn’t the parents take care of their wards? How can a government and a college stop such vandalism?

The student community all over the country must take some responsibility to draw the attention of the authority about the drawbacks in their teaching facilities and participate in national building by preparing themselves as responsible and employable candidates. They must shun the militant and damaging agitation. It will not fetch them anything on short term as well long term.

As reported, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has often been heard saying,. “Shudhu Bangla shikhle cholbe na (Just Bengali won’t do)” in his urgency to put Bengal on the development map. He wants Bengali students to get the fluency in English as the Chinese are doing in China. Will Mulayam do that?

Perhaps, the students of Bihar and Eastern UP have a little more responsibilty for building a better image of the region.
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And the result- 163-year lab lag with China