V-P Dhankhar questions rise of coaching culture; says it should build skills, not dominate education
He also said, "We do live in a nation and nations that are a comity. We work in togetherness, we work in tandem. We have mutual respect, diplomatic dialogues. But at the end of the day, we are sovereign, we take our own decisions.'
Addressing the officer trainees of IDES 2024 batch at the Vice-President's Enclave here, he said, 'There will be challenges. Challenges will be to create divisiveness. For example, we have seen global conflagrations - two of them in particular, you know them. These have become open-ended. Look at the devastation of property, human lives, and their misery. And look at our calibration. We taught a lesson, taught it well. We chose Bahawalpur and Muridke, and then brought it to a temporary conclusion. 'Operation Sindoor' is not over - it continues."
He said that Operation Sindoor is not paused, and added, 'Some people ask the question - why was it stopped? We are a nation that believes in peace, nonviolence, a land of Buddha, Mahavira, and Gandhi. We do not wish to kill even living beings - how can we target human beings? The idea was to generate sanity, to generate a sense of humanity in the others.'
'Our demographic dividend is a global envy. 65% of our population is below 35 years of age. The median age of this country is 28, whereas that of China and the U.S. is around 38–39, and Japan, 48. Now, you are the chosen ones. You've got the opportunity to serve Bharat, home to one-sixth of humanity," he said.
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The true commemoration of International Day of Parliamentarism will only take place the moment we truly become 'citizens' and not 'followers'. It is imperative for us to demand accountability as we are the demos (people) in this democracy. Guncha Shandilya is a student of history at University of Delhi and worked on this article as part of her research internship with Maadhyam, a civic engagement initiative. The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
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