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NT Bureau
Chennai, Feb 24:
 

President A P J Abdul Kalam and Governor Surjit Singh Barnala at the convocation of Madras Christian College in Chennai yesterday. State Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy is also seen.

        India would be a prosperous country even before 2020, said President A P J Abdul Kalam.

        'If we perform in an integrated way with development politics as the focus, in mission mode with transparency, I visualise even before the year 2020, a prosperous India is possible,' Kalam said while delivering the convocation address at Madras Christian College here yesterday.

        In addition to the above economic, social and human development, the President said, 'India will also have a visible global presence in strategic sectors and will contribute to world peace.' He said, 'all our technological and economical advances while enhancing our prosperity would embed our value system derived from our civilizational heritage. This unique combination will make our growth robust and sustainable and will lead to a peaceful, secure, happy and prosperous society.'

        'With the capacity built by Madras Christian College, I am sure you will definitely be able to become partners many of the missions leading to developed India by 2020 based on your specialisation,' he added.

        The most important part of education is inculcating confidence in students and an attitude of 'we can do it', Kalam said and added 'inquiry, creativity, technology, enterpreneurial and moral leadership are five capacities required to be built through the education process.'

        'If we develop our students in all these five capacities, we will produce an autonomous learner — a self-directed, self -controlled, lifelong learner — who will have the capacity to both respect authority and at the same time question the authority in an appropriate manner.'

        'These are the leaders who will work together as a self-organising network and transform any state into a prosperous state,' he said.

        Kalam also dwelt on the need to develop moral leadership in students. 'Moral leadership required the ability to have compelling and powerful dreams or visions of human betterment and also a disposition to do the right thing and influence others also to do the right thing,' he said.

        Kalam said the aptitude for entrepreneurship should be cultivated in the college environment.

        'We must teach our students to take calculated risks for the sake of larger gain, but within the ethos of good business'.

        'They should also cultivate a disposition to do the right thing. This will enable them to take up challenging tasks later,' he said.

        Kalam said students had to be taught skills with which they could find their way through the 'sea of knowledge' and continue with life-long learning.

        'Every student in our colleges should know how to use the latest technologies for aiding their learning process,' he said, adding that the role of teachers will not diminish in the midst of technological innovations and revolutions.

        'In fact the teacher will become even more important and the whole world of education will become teacher-assisted and help in tele-porting the best teacher to every nook and corner of the country and propagate knowledge.'

        Kalam also administered an oath on courage to the students.

        Speaking on the ocasssion, State Governor Surjit Singh Barnala said education as a means to elevating one's mind should make the youth, the citizens of tomorrow to think independently, creatively and positively and to dedicate themselves to the vision of making India a developed nation.

        Inaugurating Centre for International Social Work, State Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi said the students should learn to work hard, develop self confidence and to compete.