5G will take education to next level: PM,says NEP will pull country out of English 'slave mentality'
Adalaj, Oct 19: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the 5G telecom service would take the education system in the country to the next level as the latest technology will go beyond "smart facilities, smart classrooms, and smart teachings".
He also asserted that the New Education Policy (NEP) will pull the country out of the "slave mentality" surrounding the English language.
The prime minister was speaking after launching the Gujarat government's Mission Schools of Excellence initiative at Adalaj town in Gandhinagar district.
He pointed out that knowledge of English was considered as the mark of being intellectual even though the English language is just a medium of communication.
The Mission will help strengthen education infrastructure in Gujarat by setting up new classrooms, smart classrooms, computer labs and overall upgradation of the infrastructure of schools in the state.
"Recently-launched 5G service will go beyond smart facilities, smart classrooms, and smart teachings. It will take our education system to the next level," the prime minister said.
He said students can now experience virtual reality, the Internet of Things, and other cutting-edge technologies in their schools with the help of the 5G service.
The PM also advocated the use of local languages to make sure that those uncomfortable with English are not left behind.
"Earlier, knowledge of the English language was considered a criterion of being intellectual. In reality, the English language is just a medium of communication. This language barrier was a hindrance. Many young talents from villages could not become doctors and engineers because they were not well-versed in English," he said.
The prime minister said youngsters now have the option to pursue studies in other languages.
"We aim to ensure that children of poor parents become doctors and engineers even if they are not educated in English (medium). We want to ensure that no one is left behind due to the lack of the English language," Modi said, adding the "New Education Policy of the Centre will pull the country out from this slave mentality surrounding the English language".
The prime minister said Gujarat has experienced a drastic change in the education scenario during the last two decades.
"During the last two decades, the Gujarat government has built 1.25 lakh new classrooms and inducted nearly 2 lakh teachers. Television sets were already installed in 15,000 classrooms a decade ago. Today, attendance of nearly one crore students and 4 lakh school teachers is being marked through online mode," said Modi, who had served as the chief minister of Gujarat before becoming the prime minister in 2014.
Under the Mission Schools of Excellence, the state government will build 50,000 new classrooms and convert nearly 1 lakh existing classrooms of government-run schools into smart classrooms using 5G technology, the prime minister said.
"Using this technology, a teacher can impart real-time education to several schools in villages through online mode. Now, the best education and content will reach everyone. Students of villages will be benefited the most because of this initiative." he said.
He said under the Mission, students will be prepared for competitive exams from a young age and also made aware of other subjects such as arts and robotics.
The PM recalled that as chief minister he had launched several schemes, such as 'Shala Praveshotsav' and 'Gunotsav'- a festival focussing on the quality of education- to improve the education scenario in Gujarat.
Ahead of his address, the prime minister interacted with some youngsters who he said were admitted to the first standard of school in his presence at a village in Gujarat many years ago during the 'Shala Praveshotsav', a state government initiative to increase the student enrollment.
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Indian mobile hospital treats over 2,200 cyclone-hit people as New Delhi ramps up relief efforts in
Colombo (PTI): A mobile hospital set up by India in Sri Lanka has provided medical care to over 2,200 people affected by Cyclone Ditwah, as New Delhi ramped up its assistance to the flood-ravaged island nation with engineering support and delivery of fresh relief consignments, the Indian mission here said on Sunday.
Sri Lanka has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse triggered by the cyclone, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country's disaster-response capacity.
At least 627 people have been killed and 190 remain missing as of Sunday noon due to catastrophic floods and landslides caused by extreme weather conditions since November 16.
Sharing a social media post by the Ministry of External Affairs on its X handle, the Indian High Commission said a field hospital set up by India in Mahiyanganaya near Kandy has provided medical care to more than 2,200 people affected by the cyclone since December 5.
The hospital has also performed 67 minor procedures and three surgeries, it said. The field hospital was airlifted to Sri Lanka by an IAF C-17 aircraft along with a 78-member Indian medical team on Tuesday.
In another post, the mission said Indian Army engineers, working with Sri Lanka Army Engineers and the Road Development Authority, in Kilinochchi have begun removing a damaged bridge on the Paranthan–Karachchi–Mullaitivu (A35) road, a key route disrupted by the cyclone.
"This joint effort marks another step toward restoring vital connectivity for affected communities," it said.
India has additionally sent nearly 1,000 tonnes of food items and clothing contributed by the people of Tamil Nadu. Of these, about 300 tonnes reached Colombo on Sunday morning aboard three Indian Naval ships.
High Commissioner Santosh Jha handed over the supplies to Sri Lankan Minister for Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.
India, on November 28, launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu', a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) initiative, to aid Sri Lanka in its recovery from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Since the launch of the operation, India has provided about 58 tonnes of relief material, including dry rations, tents, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, essential cloths, water purification kits and about 4.5 tonnes of medicines and surgical equipment, the Indian mission said in a press release on Sunday.
Another 60 tonnes of equipment, including generators, inflatable rescue boats, Outboard Motors, and excavators, have also been brought to Sri Lanka, it said, adding that 185 tonnes of Bailey Bridge units were airlifted to restore critical connectivity along with 44 engineers.
Two columns of the National Disaster Response Force, comprising 80 experts and K9 units with specially trained dogs, assisted with immediate rescue and relief efforts in Sri Lanka.
Besides the field hospital in Mahiyanganaya, medical centres have also been set up in the badly hit Ja-Ela region and in Negombo. INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri, and INS Sukanya provided immediate rescue and relief assistance to Sri Lanka.
Apart from the two Chetak helicopters deployed from INS Vikrant, two heavy-lift, MI-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force are actively involved in evacuations and airlifting relief material, the release said.
At the request of the Sri Lankan Disaster Management Centre, a virtual meeting was organised between DMC and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s National Remote Sensing Centre on Saturday.
Since the onset of the disaster, ISRO has been providing maps to assist DMC in its rescue efforts, the release said.
