Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu Thursday said that the United Nations should conclude deliberations on the definition of terror and then come out with an action plan to isolate the forces of terrorism.
"So, terrorism should be eliminated. The entire world must come together and understand the pain of people who are being affected by terror and try to eliminate it.
That's why I have been saying from every platform that international, United Nations organisation should conclude the deliberations on what is the definition of terror.
They have been discussing for years together and (should) then come out with an action plan to isolate the forces of terror," he said.
"....terrorism has no religion, region or colour and must be eliminated," he said.
In an apparent reference to Pakistan, he said "our neighbour" is aiding, abetting, funding and training terrorism", which was not acceptable at all.
So steps should be taken to ensure that children's minds are also prepared towards the need to preserve peace, harmony, living together, taking care of others and also working together and safeguarding the nation's interests, he said.
Naidu was addressing the two day National Conference on 'Nai Talim- Experiential Learning in Teacher Education', organised by the Mahatma Gandhi National Council of Rural Education.
Nai Talim is a principle which states that knowledge and work are not separate.
The Vice President said women's education should become the cardinal principle of Nai Talim and empower society to dispel gender stereotypes.
Education is the key element in the rural transformation that Mahatma Gandhi dreamt of, Naidu said and asked institutes like the National Council of Rural Education to take steps to enhance the quality of education in rural areas.
He opined that aspects like bridging the rural-urban divide and the Gandhian ideal of Gram Swaraj should form part of the syllabus.
Naidu said the nation cannot realise its full potential if half the population is not able to contribute meaningfully to economic development and are not given opportunities for personal fulfilment and career growth.
The vice president felt that the education system would lose its relevance if it was not organically connected to a society's present and its future.
Quoting former President Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, he said bridging the rural-urban divide was closely linked with the mission of overcoming poverty and inequity.
He opined that creating urban amenities like affordable health care, access to clean water, lending support to rural livelihoods, nurturing the unharnessed resources and potential would help bridge the urban-rural divide.
He also stressed the need to pay special attention to girls' education, especially in rural areas and favoured basic education being taught in the mother tongue.
The education system must also teach morals, he said and added that those who fled the country after committing economic offences would not have true happiness.
"We made a lot of advancement in business. You are seeing what is happening. Fellows looting here, cheating here and then going and somewhere and then claiming that if I come back to India, there is a threat to my life.
You loot here and go there and criticise your country and then send a bad name... Why all this? Because of lack of morals.....I don't want to take their names. Are they happy there, in those countries?
Temporarily, they may be spending their money, which is ill-gotten money or hidden money and then after some time..." he said.
Such people would miss their families and friends, he said, adding that real happiness would come with an ethically sound life.
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