“Growth can happen only with education”

M. Ponnavaikho, Bharathidasan University Vice-Chancellor, conferring a degree on a student in Thanjavur on Sunday. Photo: M. Srinath

Education to all alone can help in the economic development of the country, said M.Ponnavaikko, Vice-Chancellor, Bharathidasan University, at Orathanadu, 20 kms from here on Sunday.

Delivering the first convocation address of the Bharathidasan University's constituent college for women, Ponnavaikko said that the country remained poor with respect to per capita income though it has good gross domestic product (GDP) growth and purchase power parity.

With respect to GDP, the country is in the 12th place among nearly 177 countries. With respect to Purchase Power Parity, the country is in the fourth place. But when it comes to per capita income, it is in the 148th place. “This means economy of the people has not grown. For this, all should be educated so that they may earn and improve their income,” Mr.Ponnavaikko said.

He said that the young graduates who received the degrees on Sunday should continue their learning process throughout their lives. Some of them might be in a situation to go to job immediately. Family circumstances may warrant it. But they can continue their education through distance mode even while working. He said that one should be learning to know, learning to do, learning to live together and learning to be.

“Unity is not there among our people and politicians. They live in groups. This should be overcome and everyone should live together,” he said. He stressed the importance of team spirit, truthfulness, honesty wherever they worked. He also suggested, quoting a Tirukkural couplet, that one should know the job which he or she is going to take, ability of other persons who are working with him or her and improve the individual talent to sustain in the job.

Tracing the history of the college, the Vice-Chancellor said that it was established with the efforts taken by Union Minister of State for Finance S.S.Palani Manickam. Along with it, Perambalur and Lalgudi constituent colleges were also established by the Bharathidasan University. But with respect to land, Orathanadu college has got 33 acres while Perambalur got only10 acres of land and Lalgudi five acres of land. Permission was given in the initial stages to teach four subjects. Now 13 subjects are taught in the college. The Vice-chancellor distributed degrees to 111 graduates on the occasion.