Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi   

“Reservation necessary”

Photo: M. Moorthy

ATTITUDE IS IMPORTANT: K. Ashok Vardhan Shetty, Principal Secretary, Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, addressing students on the Graduation Day at Periyar College of Pharmaceutical Science for Girls in Tiruchi on Monday. —

TIRUCHI: Reservation is necessary to equalise opportunities for those born without luck, K. Ashok Vardhan Shetty, Principal Secretary, Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, said on Monday.

The talk of merit-based admissions, for instance, does not suit the scenario wherein first generation learners based in rural areas have to compete with their city counterparts who enjoy the advantage of being fifth-generation learners with schooling in top-notch institutions, Mr. Shetty explained, addressing the Graduation Day of Periyar College of Pharmaceutical Sciences for Girls.

Mr. Shetty felt that effort is the main determiner of success in professional and personal spheres though talent and luck also mattered in lesser proportions. Success warrants hard work and most people realise their strengths only when given the opportunities and motivated to perform.

Emphasising on the need for strengthening rationalism and humanism, Mr. Shetty cited inhuman incidents reported in the recent past to caution that civilisation could slide back if scientific temper was not cultivated in the society. The social reformation ushered in by Periyar through five decades of struggle should be safeguarded.

Women are doing well in most professions, but broken marriages and increase in divorce rate is a cause for concern. Men and women must learn to strike the right balance of work and life. Working couples must spend time together. Right attitude is of more importance than time management, he felt.

Mr. Shetty conferred degrees on 120 undergraduates and 24 post graduates and administered the pledge in the presence of the Founder Chairperson of the Periyar Centenary Educational Complex K. Veeramani, Principal R. Senthamarai and Vice-Chancellor of Periyar Maniammai University, Vallam, N. Ramachandran.

In his presidential address, Dr. Veeramani explained Periyar’s vision to make education an instrument of social change. Having enjoyed the benefits, graduates must render service to society with a sense of indebtedness, he emphasised.

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