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From Principal’s Desk
The word ‘education’ is multidimensional. It has a wide range of meaning. This is Swami Vivekananda’s oft quoted and widely acclaimed definition: ‘Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man.’ Indian scriptures say “Sa Vidyaya Ya Vimuktaye.” Education is what liberates. Liberates from what ? From ignorance, poverty, ill health, superstition, mean-mindedness, all kinds of bigotry and the evils which frustrate the progress of human civilization and stand in the way of making this world a beautiful place to live in. Education is one of the basic needs of human existence. According to Aristotle, it is better to remain unfed than untaught. In his opinion, the difference between an educated and an uneducated person is like the difference between a living and a dead. India is a great country with an exceedingly glorious past and limitless future potential. But the present is not so rosy. Even after sixty-seven years of independence a vast portion of its population is steeped into ignorance and as a corollary to it, devoid of the fundamental requirements of life. Impoverishment reigns supreme and forty percent of the population is below the poverty line. A great chunk of Indian population is devoid of the knowledge of the three R’s (reading, writing & arithmetic) -- a number accounting for half of the world’s total illiterate people and more than that of the African countries taken together. The gross enrolment ratio, both at the elementary and higher level is far from what is being expected. The number of drop-outs is mind-boggling. So far as higher education is concerned, India is lagging far behind in comparison with some of the developing nations, not to speak of the developed ones. And all these take place in spite of talk on Right to Education Act, Education for all or Sarvasiksha Abhijaan programme, introduction of midday meal and prohibition of child labour etc. All that we can say is that a little has been done and much remains to be done. To borrow the poet’s words, ‘miles to go’ before we reach the goal.
Murshidabad district in West Bengal is one of the educationally backward districts of the country as per UGC classification. Nagar in Murshidabad is an all the more backward human habitation in respect of all the parameters, with the light of education reaching here late. Like most other rural regions in West Bengal as well as the whole country, it has an agrarian background and the need for higher education was paramount. With this purpose the college was established in 1998 with only 52 students many of whom were first generation learners. The sapling has now matured into a full-grown tree extending its numerous branches and catering the educational needs of more than 2000 learners belonging to all the spheres of the society. The credit goes to all who are directly and indirectly associated with this sacred seat of learning. There are problems but we believe in the dictum, “Tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection”. Our great journey on the path of education has started and we hail the immortal and indomitable spirit charaibeti charaibet i,e, go ahead, go ahead.
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