Padma Bhushan winning Kannada writer SL Bhyrappa dies of age-related health issues
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Bengaluru (PTI): Popular Kannada novelist and philosopher S L Bhyrappa died due to cardiac arrest at a private hospital here on Wednesday. He was 94 and is survived by his wife and two sons.
"The legendary Indian novelist, philosopher, Padma Shri, Padmabhushana, and Saraswathi Samman awardee Shri S L Bhyrappa suffered a cardiac arrest today at 2.38 pm and reached the lotus feet of the Almighty. Om Shanti !!!," Rashtrotthana Hospital said in a statement.
According to sources, Bhyrappa's body would be kept at Ravindra Kalakshetra in Bengaluru for people to pay their last respects on September 25, and his cremation is likely to be held on September 26 in Mysuru, where he lived for many years.
Expressing grief over Bhyrappa's demise, the Karnataka government has decided to perform his last rites with full state honours.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi mourned the death of Bhyrappa and described him as a "towering stalwart" who stirred people's conscience and delved deep into the soul of India.
"In the passing of Shri S L Bhyrappa Ji, we have lost a towering stalwart who stirred our conscience and delved deep into the soul of India. A fearless and timeless thinker, he profoundly enriched Kannada literature with his thought-provoking works. His writings inspired generations to reflect, question, and engage more deeply with society," Modi said.
"His unwavering passion for our history and culture will continue to inspire minds for years to come. My thoughts are with his family and admirers in this sad hour. Om Shanti," he said.
Bhyrappa has been the bestselling novelist for over 25 years now. His novels are widely translated to English and pan Indian languages.
He is known for depicting fundamental human emotions in his works, along with sharing his knowledge on Indian philosophical and cultural traditions.
Bhyrappa has penned about 25 novels and four volumes of literary criticism and books on aesthetics, social issues, and culture, among others. He is known for his popular novels 'Vamshavriksha', 'Daatu', 'Parva', and 'Mandara', among others.
He was a recipient of Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Saraswati Samman, Sahitya Akademi Award,s among other honours.
His works like 'Naayi-Neralu', 'Matadana', 'Vamshavriksha', 'Tabbaliyu Neenaade Magane', have been adapted into films.
Bhyrappa's autobiography is titled Bhitti (Canvas).
Born in Santeshivara, a village in the Channarayapatna taluk of Hassan district on August 20, 1931, Bhyrappa held an MA in Philosophy and a PhD in Aesthetics. He served as a Professor of Philosophy for over three decades at NCERT.
Bhyrappa is often regarded as a "right-wing writer" with pro-Hindutva leanings, particularly for his novel 'Avarana', which deals with the themes of Islamic invasion of India and religious conversion.
Expressing grief, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in a post on 'X' said, "The literary world has been left poorer by the death of Bhyrappa, who had a huge readership due to his writing style." JDS supremo H D Deve Gowda said, "Bhyrappa's passing away is an irreparable loss to the Kannada literary world, as he gave the world excellent novels and touched the hearts of millions of readers." Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy said, the death of Bhyrappa, who transformed the very way of perceiving and reading the Mahabharata and Ramayana through his novels, Parva and Uttarakanda, has come as a "profound shock".
Deputy CM D K Shivakumar, former CM B S Yediyurappa, Leader of Opposition in Assembly R Ashoka, state BJP President B Y Vijayendra, among others condoled the death.
Writer and Rajya Sabha MP Sudha Murty and her husband Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy were among those who visited the hospital to pay last respects to Bhyrappa.
"We have lost a literary stalwart. His contribution to Kannada literary work is immense," Sudha Murty told reporters.
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'AI double-edged sword in education sector', educationist calls for ensuring data privacy
New Delhi (PTI): Artificial intelligence is a force multiplier in the education sector but unethical use of AI tools for cheating, data and privacy breach is a matter of concern, according to educationist Shishir Jaipuria.
Jaipuria, Chairman of the Seth Anandram Jaipuria Group of Educational Institutions, said the purpose of education is to nurture knowledgeable, skilled, conscientious and emotionally strong individuals who go on to make a positive impact on society, but the rat race defeats it and pushes students to take extreme steps.
“The advent and prevalence of artificial intelligence has been a watershed moment in the history of human progress. AI is not just transforming industries, but also reshaping the jobs of the future. Its integration and application in the education sector will have far-reaching implications," Jaipuria told PTI.
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“AI platforms allow schools to map each child's learning style, identify the learning gaps, and recognise the strengths and weaknesses to optimise learning outcomes. Secondly, AI is helping teachers cut down on their routine tasks, improving productivity, efficiency and allowing more time for classroom delivery,” he added.
By adopting artificial intelligence, many schools have created an ecosystem of personalised learning, Jaipuria said.
With the availability of information on the internet, technology promotes self-learning in geographies that don't have an adequate number of teachers. Having said that, there are legitimate concerns regarding the ethical use of AI, he highlighted.
“There have been instances of AI being used for cheating, particularly in online assessments. Schools also have to develop guardrails to prevent data breaches and ensure privacy,” he said.
The educationist also highlighted that teacher training and professional development have to be directed towards creating digital competencies to enable educators to leverage the full potential of AI.
“Pre-emptive measures coupled with guardrails and policy initiatives and investments to close digital infrastructural gaps can make AI a force multiplier in the education sector,” he underlined.
On the changes in school education after the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP), Jaipuria said that NEP-2020 is a forward-looking document envisioning competency-based education with a focus on interdisciplinary approach, critical thinking, experiential learning, multilingualism and research.
“On the other hand, there is a need to speed up the implementation of NEP. Challenges do exist in the form of nationwide implementation of the three-language formula, with resistance from the southern states. There also needs to be an uptick in annual budgetary allocation for education to reach the proposed figure of 6 per cent of GDP,” he pointed out.
On the incidents of student suicide, Jaipuria said, “They are extremely unfortunate. I see it as a larger issue – a societal and systemic problem. At a very fundamental level, we have to clearly understand the purpose of education.
“The purpose is to nurture knowledgeable, skilled, conscientious and emotionally strong individuals who go on to make a positive impact on society. But if this purpose is neglected in the race to crack competitive exams and secure top grades, the pressure of performance builds up on the learners.”
Jaipuria stressed that this problem needs to be addressed collaboratively by the schools, parents and communities.
“Success should not be viewed through the lens of marks or grades alone. We have to adopt a more holistic and broader view. There has to be a strong parental engagement to identify the early signs and address the problem in the nascent stage with early interventions,” he said.
Talking about the Jaipuria Group’s expansion plans, the chairman said the growth roadmap includes expanding to a network of 50 schools by 2030.
Presently, the Seth Anandram Jaipuria Group of Educational Institutions has a strong presence in north India with 23 K-12 schools, five preschools, two management institutions and one teacher training academy.
“We have a new school coming up in the NCR, and we are targeting new markets in Rajasthan as well. We also plan a stronger outreach through our Saamarthya Teachers Training Academy of Research (STTAR) to facilitate professional development of teachers, school development programmes and education leadership projects,” he said.
