Dressed in a formal grey bandhgala, President Pranab Mukherjee donned the hat of a teacher at the Dr. Rajendra Prasad Sarvodaya Vidyalaya on Friday.
Giving lessons in History and Political Science to a classroom of 60 students from classes XI and XII, Mr. Mukherjee developed an instant connect with them and asked them to call him ‘Mukherjee Sir’.
“If anyone of you feel bored, you are free to tell me. I am no longer a President or a Minister. I am just Mukherjee Sir, I will be happy if you call me Mukherjee Sir,” the President said.
ADVERTISEMENT
He spoke about the meaning of development for people in the current times and said that people these days do not value things they get. During the hour-long class, the President touched upon various facets of political history, including changes in the economy under former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao, and Finance Minister Manmohan Singh.
He also said that he was not a bright student. “I was an average student. I had to walk five kms to my school and used to complain to my mother about the distance. She would tell me that she had no option and always advised me to work hard,” he said.
Stating that teachers were responsible for kindling the interest of students in books, he said that his college Principal was an excellent orator who ensured “my interest in history and English”.
ADVERTISEMENT
“While narrating Julius Caesar, our teacher used to play the role of Brutus, Antony and Caesar. It was done so beautifully that within the next two years I had finished half of the books of William Shakespeare,” he said.
The idea of holding a class was proposed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Deputy Manish Sisodia.