Address at the launching of

Ladakh model of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan

Leh, Ladakh
28 July 2006

Learning gives Creativity

Small aim is a crime

I am indeed delighted to participate in the launching of

the Ladakh Model of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan organized by the
Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council. I understand
that Leh-Ladakh has significantly improved the educational
level of the region through the education reform programme
called Operation New Hope (ONH) which has been run by local
members in collaboration with Students Educational Cultural
Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL). Due to this initiative, I
understand that the pass percentage in matriculation has
risen from 5% in 1998 to 50% in 2005. I am happy that the
members of the Hill Development Council are launching the
second phase of operation new hope called Ladakh Model of
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan to further strengthen the educational
base of the Ladakh region.

The aim in the second phase should be to increase the

pass percentage in matriculation from the present 50% to
Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam
www.presidentofindia.nic.in
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nearly 100% within the next five years. Also the programme
can focus on ensuring that there is no drop out of children
before completing the matriculation in this region.
Simultaneously, there is a need to include entrepreneurship
and vocational training to the students at the secondary level,
so that they can become entrepreneurs based on the core
competence of the region such as sheep breeding, wool
extraction, pre-loom processing, conversion of wool into wollen
textiles and garments in addition to fulfilling the dreams of
some youths of becoming engineers, doctors, managers and
administrators. Similarly, the vocational training could also
be done for handicrafts area. The success of Operation New
Hope programme depends upon the teacher. Hence I would
like to talk on the subject “Learning Gives Creativity”

Mission of the Teacher

School is the environment where the character of the

child is getting shaped. The prime learning period for the
children is five to seventeen years of age. The student spends
approximately 25,000 hours in the school campus. Of course,
at home, love and affection are imparted but again most of the
time of the day is spent in preparing school’s homework and
studying, eating, playing and sleeping. Hence the school
hours for children are the best time for learning and need best

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of environment, mission oriented learning with value system.
I still hear the echo from Bestolozzy, a Greek teacher’s saying,
“give me a child for seven years. Afterwards, let the God or
devil take the child. They cannot change the child.” That is the
great confidence of the great teacher. What a golden mission
for the teachers of great character and value system in our
schools in the country!

Education of the under-privileged children is essential not

only for them and their parents but also for the development
of the country. If they drop out, it is indeed dropout of the
progress of the country. Providing education to such children
and motivating them to pursue them is a major social
responsibility. The teachers have to develop the necessary
attitude to bring up the children through innovative methods
of teaching suiting the background and compulsion of such
under-privileged children who are as much gifts of God. In
view of the shortage of teachers, can I moot the idea whether
we can induce housewives and many people who have retired
from service to take up the task of education?

Elevating the young minds

While I was in college, I remember the lectures given by

highest authority of the Jesuit institution Rev Father Rector

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Kalathil of St. Joshep’s college, Trichirappalli, Tamilnadu.
Every week on Monday, he will take class for an hour. He used
to talk about good human beings, present and past, and what
makes a good human being. In this class he used to give
lectures on personalities such as Buddha, Confucius, St.
Augustine, Califa Omar, Mahatma Gandhi, Einstein, Abraham
Lincoln including some scientific personalities and moral
stories linked to our civilizational heritage. He also used to talk
about great personalities living in the father’s lodge and who
had made contribution with values in the service of the people.
It is essential in the secondary schools and colleges to arrange
a lecture by a great teacher of the institution once in a week
for one hour on India’s civilizational heritage. This class can be
called as a Moral Science Class. That will elevate the young
minds to love the country, to love the other human beings and
elevate the young to higher planes.

Now I would like to give a message to the students.

Creativity commences in children with primary education

I would suggest that the creativity has to be built-in the

primary schooling of children in the age group of 5 to 11. This
is the period the learning time of our children should be
devoted to creative lessons like building model aircraft,
rockets, spacecrafts, cars, tractors, chemical experiments,
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electronic devices, computers, paintings, sculptures, sports
music and dance. That means our present syllabus has to be
reduced and the learning process should concentrate on
creative lessons and creative products in the class rooms. Can
we bring down the bag weight of the primary school students?
Here, I would like to discuss a computer assisted education
model which I have seen in Karnataka.

In this model accelerated learning through computers

has been used in many government schools in Karnataka in
partnership with the Azim Premji Foundation. In this system
of education, reduction in dropouts is being realized through
active participation of parents, teachers and a social
organization in the region. This technique can be adopted in
Leh-Ladakh region, so that drop outs at middle and
secondary school level can be further reduced. Recently, in
the Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh, I inaugurated a
programme called Head Start where the children are
introduced to computers right at Class-I. The Sarva Shiksha
Abhiyan Programme may like to consider introduction of such
programmes in Ladakh area. Now I would like to discuss
about creativity among children.

Creativity

I was thinking about creativity.

1. How it is created?

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 2. What is the source?

3. Is it genetic? Or

4. By learning, can it be created?

Dear Children, can you tell me three important events of

20th century that changed the human life in this planet? Any
one of you?

CHARLES DARWIN, who propounded the theory of

“Natural Selection”. He made us think differently about how
the evolution of human being took place. Thomas Alva Edison,
gave application of electricity, which revolutionized every field
of science and technology and human life.

Mahatma Gandhi, launched Ahimsa Dharma movement

against racial discrimination in South Africa and fought
against British rule in India through non-violence. These
three events of 20th century are the results of creative mind.

Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is

friendly to us and conspires only to give the best to those who
dream and work. Like, Sir CV Raman looked at the sea and
the sky, and questioned why the sea should be blue? This led
to the birth of Raman Effect, he found the blue of the sea was

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due to the molecular scattering of light and was not a case of
reflection of the sky in water as most people imagined.

One of the major breakthroughs in science in the 20th

century that had an everlasting impact on the human kind is
the most celebrated work of Einstein. Einstein explained, for
the first time in 1905, the principle of the inertia of energy as a
universal law. The famous energy equation E=MC2 was given
to the world. This equation has become the basis for
converting matter into energy – giving birth to a new avenue
called the nuclear energy for producing electricity to light up
our cities and villages and becomes the prime force for our
industrial sector.

After this event, Einstein looked up to the space and saw

millions and millions of galaxies and he noticed that we belong
to one of the smallest galaxy. All of us know that in the
smallest galaxy, sun is the smallest star. In this smallest
galaxy, we have 10 planets and the planet in which the human
race lives is an insignificant planet. But yet we have all types
of lives, including human life. Creative astronomers like
Copernicus, Galileo and Kepler had given a new dimension to
the world of astronomy. Today we take it for granted that earth
is a globe, orbiting around the sun, and the sun orbits in the
Milky Way. We are not alone. Human race is not a unique race

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in the universe. Many technological advancements we have
today are the outcome of scientific exploration of scientists of
earlier time. At no time, man was beaten by problems. He
strives continuously to subjugate impossibility and then
succeeds. This quality has to be imbibed among children,
right at the formative years.

You are fortunate to be in a beautiful atmosphere of

hills, valley, rivers and snow. This is a beautiful environment
for promoting creativity among the children. We have to
cultivate a habit of observing the nature and enjoy its beauty.
This will provide an incentive for all the children to become
creative. Dear students, do you know, the Ladakh region
where you are, the world's highest observatory for infrared
studies is located in Digpa Ratsa Ri, Hanle, at an altitude of
4500 meters above sea level. Prof. Ramnath Cowshik has
established this Henle remotely controlled observatory with a
2-m optical infrared telescope. This will help to study the
galaxies and new stars. In addition, it enables continuous
monitoring of Active Galactic Nuclei.

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 Now, I would like to answer some of the questions asked
by the students of Ladakh.
Questions from Students of Lakakh

1. I have heard that in Bhutan the King sent the

crown Prince to a Government school. Similarly, I
am told that in many countries Prime Ministers
send their own children to the same school where
common peoples children go. Do you think there
will be a day when in our country also big leaders,
officers and teachers will make the Government
Schools so good that they can send their own
children in Government Schools?

-Ms.Tsering Choron, 6th Standard

Govt Middle School, Leh

Ans: There are good government schools, like KVs,

Navodaya Vidyalayas situated in many parts of the
country. Progressively it has been found that the
results from Kendriya Vidyalayas and Government
Schools have been improving and they are becoming
competitive with private schools. With this situation
there will be no difference in education between a
private school and government school.

2. Did you find your life more productive as a

scientist or as the President of India?

- Ms Urgan Chorol, 12th Standard

Govt Boys Higher Secondary School

Ans: Any task you have to love. Then only you can perform.
Each task has a specific function to perform. I have
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 to acquire the skills needed for the particular job. As a
scientist I had prepared a road map for transforming
India into a developed nation by 2020. As the
President I am marketing the programme to the
political system and administrative system of the
country for implementation.

3. Ladakh remains cut-off from the rest of the

country for six months in a year. Could you please
tell us when will Ladakh be connected all through
the year with its motherland?
- Ms Asma Qayoon, 11th standard
- Govt Boys Higher Sec School, Leh

Ans: Providing physical connectivity to all the remote areas

of the country is the priority task. In Bharat Nirman
Programme and the Prime Minister’s Reconstruction
programme electronic and physical connectivity is the
focus. Both central and state governments are
working to connect Leh and Srinagar with all weather
roads. Very soon Srinagar will have an international
airport. Also, Leh will have an a modern airport with
instrument landing system. The Telecom Department
is working to improve the tele-density. All these
actions will ensure that Ladakh will remain connected
all through the year with rest of India.

4. Amidst all evils like militancy, poverty and

casteism, do you still hope to get your Vision
2020 translated in to reality?
- Tsering Morup, 11th Standard
- Govt Boys Higher Sec School, Leh

Ans: J&K region needs peace. All efforts has to be made to

bring prosperity through education with value
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 system, and employment generation. As you are
aware few years back, the people below poverty line
in our country was 26%. Today it has come down to
22%. Similarly, progress has taken place in many
areas such as agriculture, ICT, Pharma, education,
healthcare, automobiles and many other sectors of
the economy. If we continue our progress and
increase the momentum of growth we can certainly
realize the goal of becoming a developed nation before
2020.

5. Why modern education does not give importance

to vocational trainings? If so why literate people
mostly prefer opting for Government jobs?
- Dechen Angmo, 4th Standard
- Govt Middle School, Chushot

Ans: There are two parts to education. One is higher

education leading to research. Another is development
of world class skills through vocational training. Both
are required for growth of our economy. The education
system must develop either higher education with
research capability or possess world class skills
enabling him to compete in the world market. Also I
am suggesting entrepreneurship to become part of the
syllabus both in the secondary education and
university education. Also the banking system has to
be young entrepreneur friendly. This will lead to
creation of small enterprises by the youth. Then we
will have employment generators rather than
employment seekers.

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 6. There are many disabled children like me in
Ladakh;many of them do not get a good education.
As the President of our country, what can you do
to help all of us to get a good education?

- Punchok Dolma, 10th Standard

Solar Course SECMOL

Ans: Recently I was addressing an award ceremony for

fulfilling corporate social responsibility. One of the
awards went to a industry called Sakthi Masala. This
industry has systematically trained and nurtured
differently abled children and adults, provided them
vocational skills and finally they employed them in the
industry. Large number of differently abled persons
are employed by this company. I am suggesting many
of our enterprises to follow this model. Recently I have
come across young boy Shri Siddarth a person with
cerebral palsy. He has studied, come out extremely
successful and today he is working with the ABN Amro
as a Manager. Also the Government has a friendly
policy towards differently abled children, including
provision of employment opportunities. I have recited
a few verses specially for the differently abled
children:

To that gathering, I recited a small poem, which runs

like this:

We are all God’s children,

Our minds are stronger than diamond.
We will win, win, win with our mighty will.
God is with us who can be against!
On hearing this, a boy from Iran by name Mustafa came
to me, who didn’t have both legs and was fitted with artificial

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limbs. He thrust a paper in my hand. He had written a
beautiful poem titled “Courage”, in Persian language. It reads
like this:

I don’t have both legs

But I possess great will power to learn and live
My mind says: Don’t weep, don’t weep
For, I need not bow even in front of a King.
I was really moved by the positive thinking of that boy.
It shows his courage to face the life with optimism. I wish all of
you to carry this message to make your life meaningful.

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Dear children I have designed a ten point oath for you. Let us
take the oath.
Conclusion: Ten Point Oath

1. I will pursue my education or the work with dedication

and I will excel in it.

2. From now onwards, I will teach at least 10 persons to

read and write those who cannot read and write.

3. I will plant at least 10 saplings and shall ensure their

growth through constant care.

4. I will visit rural and urban areas and permanently wean

away at least 5 persons from addiction and gambling.

5. I will constantly endeavor to remove the pain of my

suffering brethren.

6. I will not support any religious, caste or language

differentiation.

7. I will be honest and endeavour to make a corruption free

society.

8. I will work for becoming an enlightened citizen and make

my family righteous.

9. I will always be a friend of the mentally and physically

challenged and will work hard to make them feel normal,
like the rest of us.

10. I will proudly celebrate the success of my country and my

people.

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