Underscoring the need to arrest the moral decline in society as reflected in rising cases of crime against women and children, President Pranab Mukherjee today said universities can help by redefining moral values through education.
Speaking at a convocation at the Babsaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University here, Mukherjee said, "The rising incidents of crime against women and children call for effective measures to ensure their safety and security.
"It also calls for arresting the moral decline in our society. We must find solutions for bringing such degradation of values to an immediate halt."
Noting that education is a crucial element for national progress, human empowerment and social change, the President said, "Our universities, that possess the capability to shape the minds of the youth, should set the process of redefining our moral values in motion.
"These temples of higher learning must act as guides in meeting the contemporary moral challenges and ensure that our civilisational values of compassion for all are fully entrenched in the minds of our youth."
Mukherjee conferred a posthumous doctorate degree (honoris causa) to Late Justice J S Verma, who headed a committee that gave recommendations for a strong anti-rape law.
Mukherjee emphasised on the need for bringing several far-reaching changes in the education system.
"We continue to be challenged by problems of quantity and quality. The number of quality academic institutions in India is inadequate, due to which many meritorious students go abroad for higher studies. It would be our undoing if we cannot draw our students to seek higher education in their own country," Mukherjee said.
He pointed out that there were more than two lakh Indian students studying abroad, including in the US and UK.
Mukherjee's suggestion that universities should establish an Innovators Club to facilitate interaction between teaching and student communities and grassroots innovators was implemented by the Ambedkar university.
Mukherjee inaugurated the first such Innovators Club in any university in the country here.
