English education can’t inculcate patriotism in Indians: RSS

English education can’t inculcate patriotism in Indians: RSS

Panaji: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat has said that education is English cannot instil humanitarian and patriotic values in Indians.

He made these remarks on Sunday in the presence of Goa chief minister and education minister Laxmikant Parsekar after unveiling a statue of KB Hedgewar, the founder of the right-wing organisation, reported The Times of India.

"English education can only train us enough to be able to earn our daily bread. These are the words of Swami Vivekananda. We don't need such schools but those that teach us to serve for the betterment of other human beings," Bhagwat was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

"Veer Savarkar had said, 'If I cannot spread the fragrance of my education for the betterment of our country, then my education would be useless… Even donkeys can go around bearing the weight of books'," Bhagwat added.

The Goa CM Parsekar, however, sought to clear the air by saying that Bhagwat's speech won't influence the government while deciding on the medium of instruction (MoI) issue at schools.

"I don't feel it will have any effect, positive or negative," he said.

RSS organ 'Panchjanya' has been opining that Hindi should be promoted in India in a bid to unite the country and free it from the clutches of a foreign language, namely English.

"Hindi has the potential to unite the country," 'Panchjanya' recently opined in an editorial on September 10 coinciding with the Hindi Diwas.

"Hindi's ability to unite India is a threat to all those forces which want the country to remain enslaved to English. Hindi is not against India's regional languages. This is a myth being perpetuated," the editorial said.

In Goa, however, Forum for Rights of Children's Education (FORCE) has demanded that the government pass an Act providing grants to schools with English as their MoI. Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM), on the other hand, has called upon the government to discontinue grant-in-aid to English-medium primary schools.

The BJP's Goa government is likely to introduce the medium of instruction Bill in the winter session of the state legislative assembly that will commence on January 11.

(Image courtesy: samvada.org)

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