On November 11, India remembers Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the country’s first Education Minister, whose birthday is observed as National Education Day. 

His name is associated with the early years of independent India’s education system, when a newly freed country had to decide what type of future it wanted to build. 

Azad believed that education should reach the poorest child as much as the privileged one. 

Decades later, that simple idea remains an unfinished task.

Born on November 11, 1888, Azad was a scholar, freedom fighter, writer and national leader. He understood that political independence alone could not build a strong country. People needed schools, universities, scientific institutions and opportunities to learn. 

His work as Education Minister helped lay the foundations of modern education in India, with support for higher education, technical learning, research and cultural development. 

He also believed that women should have greater access to education.

His vision was wider than the establishment of institutions in major cities. He wanted children from poor families and communities long excluded from educational opportunities to have access to learning. 

The idea was clear and concise: a child’s future should not be decided by the circumstances of his birth.

India has made considerable progress since those early years. Its school network has expanded, digital learning has opened new possibilities and successive education policies have sought to improve the way children learn. 

The National Education Policy 2020 places emphasis on foundational literacy, critical thinking, practical learning and the overall development of students. 

These are worthwhile........

© Kashmir Observer