Remembering the significant role played by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Acharya JB Kripalani in India’s freedom movement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid rich tributes to them on their birth anniversaries on the occasion of National Education Day.
“Tributes to two stalwarts of Indian history, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Acharya JB Kripalani on their birth anniversaries. Their contribution towards India’s freedom movement and after was extremely beneficial in the building of our nation,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and JB Kriplani were born on November 11, 1988. November 11 is celebrated as the National Education Day to mark the birth anniversary of independent India’s first education minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.
The National Education Day was celebrated in 2008 first time and since then every year, the day is marked to spread awareness about education among the citizens of India. Maulana Azad was of the opinion that education was the right of one and all.
The first education minister of the country was responsible for setting up of regulatory bodies such as All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and University Grants Commission (UGC).
The country’s most premier higher educational institute like IITs, IISc and School of Architecture and Planning were also his brainchild.
Maulana Azad did not receive formal schooling but he was well-versed in languages like Urdu, Persian, Arabic, and Hindi. He was also a scholar of mathematics, philosophy, world history, and science.
The great freedom fighter was also a prominent journalist of his time. Understanding the importance of education for nation’s development, he strongly advocated free and compulsory education for children up to the age of 14 years.
Illiteracy was one of the major problems of independent India and he widely stressed adult education and literacy with focus on vocational training and diversification of secondary education.
He was also instrumental in promotion of culture and literature through education. Most of the cultural and literary academies we see today such as Lalit Kala Academy, Sahitya Academy etc. were established by him.
