The beauty of a garden lies in the varieties of flowers it holds. No one would like a garden if it has a single type of flower. It is nature’s dictum that all different things should co-exist together. Similarly, the beauty of our world lies in the diversity of people with their cultures interwoven.
India is multi-cultural multi-lingual country since ages. With its different facets in every turn – be it religion, language, race, castes, it presents a different beautiful picture. Diversity is one thing we all have in common. In spite of having such diverse dimensions, one thing we have in common is our affinity to Mother land – India. On Mother India, Mahakavi Subramanya Bharati said, “Ival Seppu Mozhi Pathinettudayaal, enir sinthanai ondrudayal”, - which roughly translates as “Mother India speaks different languages, but her thought is unified and towards a common goal”. That was the confidence and superiority complex Bharati had a century ago, when the education levels were in pathetic condition and British controlling almost whole of India. Today, after 7 decades of independence, we are definitely far better. However, to develop and make our country a leader in the world, we need to take all our people together. To nurture and develop the spirit of national integration, education acts as a catalyst.
The true essence of national integration is materialized when the citizens put the nation above all the religious, caste, political, economic, linguistic and other social beliefs. According to Dorothy Simpson, national integration means “creating a mental outlook, which will promote and inspire every person to place loyalty to the country above group loyalties and, the welfare of the country above narrow sectarian interests”. The aim is to create a sense of oneness among the citizens of a country. The sense of belongingness and obligation to the nation is inculcated in the citizens. Alex Acutain said “You cannot simultaneously cherish people’s cultures while disregarding their beliefs”. Citizens must learn to respect the beliefs of fellow citizens.
The national integration in India faces an array of challenges. Over-affinity to religion and, thereby leaning towards communalism, opens up a Pandora’s Box of problems. The intolerance between groups of individuals of opposing religious beliefs causes communal riots and widespread disturbance. Casteism is another barrier thwarting the nation building process. Political parties use religion/ caste based issues to gather votes and citizens are treated as vote bank. These are to be stopped at once, if we want to march ahead in our journey of development.
The other major challenge is the Linguistic jingoism in India. In a country which has more than a dozen official languages and hundreds of variations of these languages and dialects, arriving at a consensus on any matter is a herculean task. It may be recalled that declaring Hindi as the national language few decades back led to violent protests from non-Hindi speaking states.
The Extremist movements going on in different parts of the country are yet another challenge to national integration. Mostly youth from poor socio-economic and educational background are driven or attracted towards Naxalite and terrorist movements, and they form a vulnerable group for any anti-national movements.
A deep contemplation and analysis of the situation reveals that the root cause of these evils is the rampant ignorance. The citizens lack the ability to consider their joint national identity over their sectional one. This demolishes the country’s unity and unanimity. Citizens’ lack of knowledge and lack of open mindedness force them to resort to violence recklessly. We see innocent youth involved in stone pelting without knowing the cause and effects. All these issues hinder our efforts towards national integration. Thus the need of the hour is education which broadens the viewpoint and ushers the scope of reasoning.
Education introduces a plethora of facts –about history, geography, mythology, cultural differences, their co-existence, philosophies, governments, community life, great personalities, natural phenomena and various such aspects related to different parts of the country and the world. It helps us judge on what is wrong and what is right. It enables an individual know his/ her rights and duties. It makes us appreciate the beliefs of each other and make us feel that we are one nation.
Education inculcates moral and ethical values. It inducts the individual into the shared values of society; develops commitment to societal goals in the individual; defines behavioral patterns of individuals and society; and also enhances the productive capabilities of individuals and the society in a long run.
Aristotle once said –“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it”. Only a learned person will know how to handle differences of opinions and accept the disagreements within the agreements. Education enables individuals take informed decisions. It opens up the platform for dialogue and discussion. A well-educated and well informed set of people cannot be swayed away by subjective and unreasonable thoughts. There would be no place for taboos and superstitions. The people can be convinced only by logic.
The correlation between education and social benefits traces back to Ancient Greece. Great philosophers like Aristotle and Plato argued that education is central to the well-being of society. Researches have revealed that education enables individuals to perform better in the labour market, to improve their overall health, to promote active citizenship and to contain violence. Persons with higher levels of education are more likely to voice their concerns in civic matters, in terms of voting, volunteering, political interest, and interpersonal trust. These are the traits which take any country to greater heights.
Education acts as a change agent in many facets – political culture, political consciousness, training and selection of political elite and political integration.
French poet Victor Hugo once said “He who opens a school closes a prison”. Education improves the self-confidence of a person, his/ her vision towards the world, attitude towards the issues and approach towards the challenges. Definitely, improvements in financial and socio-economic status are guaranteed. Studies show that if more persons are enrolled in secondary schooling level, the risk of war is reduced. Incidence of civil war and rebellions are reduced drastically with enhanced education of the population. In short, if more people are getting educated, there are fewer chances of civil commotions.
The challenge of national integration is not limited to India. Many countries face this challenge. However, there is a difference. India leads the list with its demographic youth profile. With 65% of population under 35 years of age and about 50% under 25 years of age, India is the hub of fresh and novel ideas. The youth force is really a valuable human resource for our country. Engaging the youth in education and skill development helps reduce communal, terrorist and Naxalite tensions in the country and increase the tolerance levels for differences.
It is pertinent to mention the importance of education of women in our country. In the last 2 decades, the number of women getting to different areas which were once thought of as reserved for men are increasing – be it in Defence forces, technology or sports. It is aptly said that educating a girl guarantees education to a whole family in the present and future. The thrust for women education always is a positive step in developing qualities of national integration.
The ideals of National integration can be taught in educational institutions through seminars and discussions. Organising cultural events portraying the art forms of different regions of the country promotes active participation and collaboration among the students. Educational tours and excursions also help in understanding different aspects of nature, science and people. Textbooks designed to introduce the diversity and coexistence in the country play a major role in instilling tolerance in the students.
Education indeed promotes national integration and communal harmony in the country.Efforts to spread knowledge must be taken up in war footing manner. Let us spread the light of knowledge and dispel the darkness of ignorance. Let us remember the golden words of Confucius - “Education breeds confidence, confidence breeds hope, hope breeds peace”. Let us build a united, peaceful and prosperous nation.
JAI HIND!