The Indian education system should be in the hands of technocrats instead of autocrats, said Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideologue and activist Dinanath Batra at an event here on Tuesday.
“There should be an autonomous education policy and an Indian Education Services should be established along the lines of Indian Administrative Service. Nowadays, subjects are taught in isolation. Teaching a subject should be seen as a contribution to the society and should be taught in a wholesome manner,” Mr. Batra said.
He was speaking at a commemorative program to mark RSS founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar’s 125th birthday. The event was attended by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Murli Manohar Joshi.
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Stressing that Sanskrit is not a dead language, Mr. Batra said that the language had “opened the flood gates of ancient Hindu knowledge.”
Stating that ancient Hindu knowledge needs to be roused from its deep slumber, Mr. Joshi said Indians were trading their customs to ape the Western culture.
“Indians have forgotten scientific, traditional customs like sitting down for meals, although other countries like China and Japan continue to do so. We need to build our own identity and identify where our traditions have derived from,” Mr. Joshi said.
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Mr. Joshi, who was the Human Resource Development Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, took pot shots at a recent ‘My Choice’ women empowerment campaign by a fashion magazine which features about 99 leading women from the entertainment and fashion industry.
“It was a custom to refer to women as ‘mataji’ [mother] in the olden days which Indian women look down upon now. Women now say that they have a choice. They say ‘It is my body’ which has almost become into a commodity. Look at where our Hindu customs have come down to,” he said.
Emphasising the need to have a strong leader who will impart ‘Hindu’ knowledge to all, Mr. Bhagwat said traditional Hindu culture can only be carried forward with the help of education.
“Despite the presence of Western influence during the freedom struggle, leaders like Swami Vivekananda and Lokmanya Tilak worked hard to revive Hindu customs and studies,” Mr. Bhagwat said and added that uniformity is not required to be united.
“The word ‘Hindu’ is often interpreted in a wrong way. Anyone who talks about Hinduism is now branded as an RSS worker,” Mr. Bhagwat said.