Remembering APJ Abdul Kamal on this World Students' Day
Students are the future of every country. These are the individuals who would play an extremely vital role in taking the respective countries a notch higher. Many students at a young age are required to make life altering sacrifices like leaving their families and loved ones and travel far and wide to attain their career goals. Such sacrifices on the part of the youth must be acknowledged and celebrated.
And so, to commemorate this tribe, October 15 is celebrated as “World Students’ Day”.
However, this day is of paramount importance for our country.
World Students’ Day and India
In the year 2010 the United Nations in order to mark the honour of India’s former President Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, who before being a Politician identified himself as a Teacher, declared his birthday to be celebrated as World Students’ Day.
In the year 2002, Kalam was elected as the 11th President of India with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the then-opposition Indian National Congress. There was a reason as to why he was widely and fondly known “People’s President”.
India’s Missile Man
His endeavours were never just limited to teaching. His noteworthy contributions while working with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as an aerospace engineer gave India a respectable position on World’s ammunition map.
For his notable work on Pokhran-II nuclear tests, a series of five nuclear bomb test explosions conducted by India in 1998, Kalam came to be known as the 'Missile Man of India'.
Awards and APJ Abdul Kalam
Kalam was bestowed with several prestigious awards during his lifetime. His list included India’s highest civilian honour the Bharat Ratna which he received in the year 1997 followed by Padma Bhushan in the year 1981 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1990.
Science Day in Switzerland
After a gap of almost 30 years, Kalam became the first Indian head of State to visit Switzerland.
On his arrival, the President of Switzerland informed Kalam that “I had studied two of your books fully Ignited Minds and India 2020. And then I had briefed the Cabinet about your two books and your accomplishment in space and defence science and the Cabinet decided to celebrate your visit to Switzerland i.e. May 26, 2005, as Science Day of Switzerland.”
This was and till date remains a proud moment for every Indian.
Kalam a Teacher till the Very End
His devotion towards students and for teaching cannot be put down in words.
On the occasion of teacher’s day in the year 2013, Kalam had mentioned that “If people remember me as a good teacher that will be the biggest honour for me.”
His love for students finds the best voice when he had said that "If you fail, never give up because FAIL means 'the first attempt in learning'."
At the presentation of the National Awards to teachers, Kalam had expressed his innate thoughts stating that “Teachers have to realize that they are the builders of the society. A good society can be built when students have knowledge and are proficient in their subjects. They have also to provide a vision for life to the students and to inculcate the fundamentals values which can then be practiced in the years to come”.
Even the ending of his life was in a way associated with his pristine love for teaching. Kalam took his last breath on July 27, 2015, while delivering a lecture to the students of the Indian Institute of Management, Shillong.
What World Students’ Day could mean during the pandemic?
The coronavirus pandemic has had a detrimental effect on every section of the society. And students are not spared from its vicious impact.
Lives and careers of around 320 million students have been affected due to school and college closures.
Unlike, the developed countries, India faces a digital divide and this to a great extent has failed the efforts of the government as well as educational institutions of shifting to “online teaching”.
According to the 2017-18 National Sample Survey, only 23.8% of Indian households had internet access. Rural India which accommodates 66% of the total population, there only 14.9% of the total had access to the Internet. Whereas in urban households only 42% had access, even that is not enough.
More than these data, there are studies which talks loud about the evidence that the mental health of youth is suffering majorly due to closure of schools and colleges, the uncertainty of their future, add to that the flavour of minimal social life.
Given all this, students’ physical and mental well-being shall not be neglected at any cost. Today, each adult should remember and do the best they can for the students around them and preach them that, “There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. And that this too shall pass.”
Motivation for Students across the Country
On this day learn from the best. Here is a list of a few books written by APJ Abdul Kalam for your reference and reading:
- Wings of Fire: An Autobiography;
- Ignited Minds: Unleashing the Power within India; and
- India 2020: A Vision for the New Millennium
