I believe that the moral degradation is one of the root causes of all problems we are facing in India, today. Enacting any number of laws by any parliament will not help to solve it fully. The ultimate solution for all the problems of the country lies in our families as well as in our classrooms. A family is a primary school for children; where all the basic social, moral, spiritual, work and recreational values are learned. A school is an extension of the same where values are not only learned but also practiced and confirmed. In the recent years many dummy schools and coaching centres have mushroomed, because of which many children are deprived of their valuable school life. In other words, a shift of education has taken place from the hands of educators to some selfish ones due to various reasons. Such a purely commercial establishments are result oriented and not person- oriented. This approach brings forth deterioration of values in our society. This misplaced trust and focus on academics without inculcating values create many nurotic men and women, in the future. We know for certain, that in such arrangement there is no appropriation of values nor an opportunity to accompany the children to nurture and sustain values.

Education should be coupled with acquiring moral values by the joint effort of teachers and parents who are the responsible persons for the education of new generation. The need of the hour therefore, is value based education. It is only through it, we can refine one’s soul and spirit and generate a person with strong character for all sorts of professions.

According to NCRB (National Crime Board Bureau) records, there is an overall increase in crime rate in all the spheres. Which shows there is a serious problem in the present education system. Today we call it “A system on ventilator”. We have to ignite the lives of future generations by planning and blending and blending it with the moral, spiritual and humanitarian values in our schools. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and think critically. Intelligence plus character: that is the goal of true education.”

As we take ‘Universal Brotherhood’ as the theme for the present academic session 2019-20, I would like all the students, parents and teachers to reflect beyond the labels of religion, caste and creed and identify yourselves as brothers/sisters of one world-family, bonded together in love, friendliness and selfless service.