Encourage students to embrace nationalism: Naidu

Hyderabad: Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday called on educational institutions to encourage students to embrace the spirit of nationalism and patriotism.

"Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man. It should lay the foundation for a strong character. The education system must help students to become good, compassionate and caring human beings with a sense of empathy."

"It must inculcate strong ethical and moral values and infuse the spirit of nationalism and patriotism among students," the Vice President said.

He was addressing the founder's day celebrations of CHIREC International School here.

He stressed the need to teach students the culture and heritage of India.

"It is quite essential to make children aware of India's heritage, culture, customs, traditions and the basic Indian philosophy of sharing and caring. We believe in Vasudaiva Kutumbakkam -- the whole world is one family."

He said that educational institutions in the country should take an active lead and revamp the system to make it more relevant and contemporary.

He suggested that steps should be taken to reduce the burden on students. "First and foremost, the syllabus at the school level has to be drastically cut to reduce the load on students."

"The time spent by students in school should be divided equally between the classroom and play field," he added.