Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday stressed the need to be on guard against the danger posed by the politicisation of caste and the attempts to use caste and religion to cause division in society.
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Inaugurating a public conference in connection with 168th Sree Narayana Guru Jayanti celebrations at the Chempazhanthy Gurukulam, Mr. Vijayan said that caste, along with the politicisation of caste, is being used to wrest power and wealth in modern times.
The teachings of Narayana Guru offer a panacea for the problems faced by the world due to racism and religious conflicts. People who seek to divide the society using caste and religion will become irrelevant in the ebb and flow of history, Mr. Vijayan said. The Guru's teachings and his ideas shine with an eternal quality and will never be outdated, he said.
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Mr. Vijayan said that his government's emphasis on education, and agricultural and industrial growth were in sync with Narayana Guru's own ideas. The government's attempts to achieve excellence in the State's higher education sector is bearing fruit, he said. The A++ grade won by the University of Kerala in the NAAC accreditation and the presence of educational institutions from the State in the top 100 in NIRF rankings are evidence of this, he said.
The emphasis placed by the government on industrial and agricultural growth also reflects the vision of Narayana Guru who believed that both were needed for the development of society, he said.
Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan addressed the Sree Narayana Guru Jayanti celebrations at the Sivagiri Math, Varkala on Saturday. Casteism which continues to exist in States ruled by progressive forces was being conveniently ignored, he alleged. The practice by so-called progressive elements of using caste to garner votes needs to be exposed, Mr. Muraleedharan said.