Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Tuesday said the New Education Policy (NEP) aims at making India a global knowledge superpower and underlined the need for the country to once again become a Vishwa Guru in the field of education.

The Vice President said the NEP draws inspiration from the ancient Indian education system which used to focus on developing holistic and well-rounded personalities. He said the NEP seeks to make Indian education holistic, multi-disciplinary, and practical.

Addressing virtually the 13th convocation of National Institute of Technology (NIT), Agartala, Shri Naidu pointed out that the ancient education system always taught us to live in harmony with nature and respect all beings and non-beings.

“Our education was practical, wholesome, and complementary to life”, he added.

Calling upon the higher education institutions and universities to make India a thriving hub of knowledge and innovation, Naidu advised them to take up cutting edge research in various fields, establish synergy with industries and other similar institutions and turn our campuses into exciting centres of creativity and research.

Recalling the advice of former President, A P J Abdul Kalam to the youth to dream big, the Vice President asked the students to set a goal and strive hard to achieve it. “You will succeed if you work with dedication, discipline and sincerity without wavering from your chosen path”, he stressed.

He told the students to utilize their knowledge, skills and aptitude that they acquired over the years in building bright, fulfilling and successful careers.

Stressing the need to be agile, the Vice President said, "Students, researchers and academicians, therefore, cannot afford to remain in a world of status quo. They have to constantly learn, update themselves, and innovate every day".

One who learns and adapts better will thrive," he added.

He also observed that it was time for the universities, IITs, NITs and other higher education institutions to fully reorient their teaching methods and equip the teachers with new pedagogical skills in tune with the 21st-century requirements.

Naidu stressed the need to adopt an inter-disciplinary approach to address the challenges faced by mankind such as ending poverty, improving agricultural productivity and combating pollution and diseases amongst others.

The Vice President urged the corporate sector to identify key research projects in various sectors and fund them under CSR initiatives. "Enhancing public and private investments in research is of vital importance for creating a knowledge-driven society," he added.

With about 65 per cent of the country’s population comprising youth, the Vice President called for fully channelizing the energies of the youth and creating the right ecosystem for promoting entrepreneurship among them. “This is the time to tap their talents and skill for giving a fillip to ‘Vocal for Local’ campaign. Institutions like NIT-Agartala have to be at the forefront in turning youth into job creators and not just job seekers”, he added.

The Vice President expressed his happiness that NIT Agartala had adopted nearby villages with an aim of making them "Model Villages." He asked all students to spend some time in villages to understand the challenges faced by the rural India. Terming ‘agriculture’ as our ‘basic culture’, he called for making farming a viable and profitable activity.