Rajnath rolls out 'Student Police Cadet' project in Gurugram
Gurugram, July 21 : Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday here rolled out the 'Student Police Cadet' (SPC) programme, under which high school students across the country will be taught to become much more responsible citizens.
Speaking at the formal launch at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium here, he said that the SPC programme, for students of classes 8 and 9, will be implemented across the country with a vision for citizens to respect and follow laws willingly, practice responsible behaviour towards others, demonstrate empathy for weaker sections of society, and participate in tackling community issues.
A sum of Rs 67 crore had sanctioned to states for the programme's implementation and each school would get Rs 50,000 for educational aids, training and contingency for the programme, to be carried out on pilot basis in all states and union territories.
Rajnath Singh said that the venture aims to unlock the potential of India's youth and make them capable of becoming social leaders with global vision guided by humanitarian values. India has the world's largest population of youth and there is a paradigm shift in the policing function from enforcement to facilitation of law, he said.
Referring to the ill-effects of rapid modernization and incidents aired on news, TV and social media on daily basis, he said that they put a negative impact on entire society and there was a need to give moral character education at both home and school.
"Though it is a tough task and would take a long time, but we have to achieve this... Keeping this in view, SPC is being launched at national level to help in building a bridge between the police and the larger community through school students by inculcating values and ethics in them," he added.
Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar, who was also present, said that the SPC programme works on Education-Values-Law linkage, to enable school community to create safe school environment with confident and discipline youth.
It will also facilitate development of good health, physical and mental fitness, self control and discipline in youth while enabling youth to work with police in this project, he said, adding teachers will be trained by police to act as Community Police Officers (CPO) and Additional CPOs.
Noting that students of classes 8 and 9 form nearly 4 crore of the 26 crore students across the country, Javadekar said that programme, including classes, physical training, field visits, SPC camps and practical projects, will be first introduced in the government schools and later will be extended to the private educational institutes.
Students will be studying about law and constitution, communication skill, disaster management health and hygiene and about setting goal, he said.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar described the SPC programme a milestone and assured that priority would be given to these cadets in the Haryana Police recruitment drives.
Over 7,000 students, both boys and girls, from across the country participated in the launch programme.
Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh, who is the Gurugram MP, Union Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir, Haryana minister Rao Narbir Singh and several MLAs were also present.
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Ladakh a living land of dharma for centuries: Amit Shah
Leh/Jammu (PTI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday described the return of sacred relics of Lord Buddha to Ladakh after 75 years as a "historic reunion" and said that the Union Territory has remained a "living land of dharma", preserving and nurturing Buddhist knowledge for centuries.
Stressing the relevance of Buddha's teachings in modern times, Shah said the message of peace, compassion and the middle path was even more important today than it was 2,500 years ago.
"Ladakh has been a living land of dharma for centuries. When the Dalai Lama comes here, he says this land is not merely a geographical land but a living laboratory of Buddhist culture and compassion," Shah said, speaking after the inauguration of the sacred holy relics exposition of Tathagata Buddha and the 2569th Buddha Purnima celebrations at Jivetsal in Leh during his two-day visit to Ladakh.
Calling Ladakh a land of compassion, he said this land has preserved and nurtured knowledge. "Whenever Buddhism faced crises, this land worked to protect the teachings of Buddha. And when peace returned, it helped to expand and carry forward that preserved wisdom," he added.
"Unless one internalises knowledge and makes it a part of oneself, liberation is not possible. Knowledge is incomplete without spiritual practice, while spiritual practice without knowledge is blind. Therefore, the union of spiritual practice and knowledge is the right path. Even after all this, if there is no moral discipline, one cannot lead a truly wise life. The basis of a life of wisdom is moral discipline," he said.
Shah said it was through Ladakh and adjoining routes that the teachings of Tathagata Buddha, which originated in India, spread to China and several other countries.
"The message that emerged from the land of Ladakh has become a guiding force for many people around the world to take their lives forward. The presence of these sacred relics in Ladakh reminds us that India's civilisation has, for thousands of years, given the message of peace and coexistence," he said.
He said that in a diverse region like Ladakh and Kargil, this message becomes even more relevant. "This heritage still tells us today that amidst conflict and unrest, only the path of peace and compassion can provide solutions."
He said the return of the relics on Buddha Purnima had enhanced the significance of the festival for the people of Ladakh.
"These sacred relics have come to Ladakh after 75 years. It is as if Buddha himself is present here today," Shah said, adding that followers of Buddhism and people of other faiths in Ladakh and Kargil would draw spiritual energy from the relics.
Highlighting Ladakh's role in the spread of Buddhism, Shah said Kashmir was once an ancient centre of Buddhist studies, Mahayana philosophy and Buddhist art, from where Ladakh first came into close contact with Buddhism.
He said Emperor Ashoka's envoys laid the foundation of Buddhist influence in Ladakh through Kashmir and Gandhara, while Mahayana Buddhism expanded in the region during the Kushan period between the first and third centuries CE.
The Silk Route linking Kashmir, Leh, Yarkand, Khotan and Tibet became a channel not only for trade but also for ideas, monks, manuscripts and artistic traditions, Shah said.
He added that later, Tibetan influence between the seventh and tenth centuries further enriched Ladakh through Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions.
Stressing the relevance of Buddha's teachings in modern times, Shah said the message of peace, compassion and the middle path was even more important today than it was 2,500 years ago.
"Amid conflict and unrest, only the path of peace and compassion can provide solutions," he said.
Shah also appealed to the Ladakh administration to ensure complete arrangements so that followers of all faiths, especially Buddhists, could visit and pay obeisance to the relics.
#WATCH लेह, लद्दाख: केंद्रीय गृह मंत्री अमित शाह ने कहा, "जब दलाई लामा यहां आते हैं तो वे कहते हैं कि यह भूमि केवल भौगोलिक भूमि नहीं है। यह भूमि बौद्ध संस्कृति और करुणा की जीवंत प्रयोगशाला है। इस भूमि पर ज्ञान का संरक्षण हुआ है... भारत की सभ्यता हजारों वर्षों से शांति का संदेश… https://t.co/2nwG0w2CE6 pic.twitter.com/W13itRBqeX
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