“Never Detach from Your Roots”: President Murmu Advises Students

Vadodara: called upon the students to develop a broader outlook and keep the interests of the nation over their personal success and utilise their professional skills for the progress of the country.

Addressing the 75th convocation of Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda in Gujarat, urged students to ask themselves how they would use the knowledge and skills they had acquired and for whose benefit— themselves, their families or the nation. She also highlighted the growing participation of women in higher education, saying their increasing presence across various fields was a positive sign of India’s inclusive development. She said students should think beyond using their education for themselves and their families and consider how they could contribute to the larger good.

She said such progress would give them immense satisfaction and help them realise the meaningfulness of their education.

“If you are becoming an engineer, develop techniques that make people’s lives better. If you are becoming a doctor, do not consider medicine merely a profession; consider it a service,” she said.

Murmu said that while earning money is important, they should understand that wealth is not everything. “Service could provide satisfaction alongside financial success, she added.

“In service lies humanity and peace, and it brings satisfaction. While resources are needed to live, wealth is not everything; true satisfaction comes from serving others,” she said.

She called upon scientists to work on solutions to problems in the interest of humanity, while artists and writers should enrich society’s sensitivity through their art and creations. Entrepreneurs, she said, should create not only wealth but also employment and opportunities.

For those who would take to teaching, she suggested that they focus on preparing a generation that could take India’s heritage and development forward together. “Those entering public life should regard positions as responsibilities rather than authority,” she added.

The President said today the country was facing major challenges and hence a multidisciplinary approach would help the country progress faster. She urged the students not to merely look at environmental studies as yet another subject. Similarly, AI is not just part of computer science, nor is health a subject of medical science. Society needs the curiosity of a scientist, the vision of a historian, and the understanding of an economist.

Referring to the fast-changing developments in the field of technology, Murmu said students must keep their conscience awake while adopting it. “Artificial Intelligence can provide solutions, but asking the right questions is your duty. Technology can give you speed, but you have to decide in which direction you want to go,” she said.

She called upon the students to imbibe the ideals of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity enshrined in the Constitution in their lives and workplaces, saying their commitment to human and constitutional values would strengthen India’s democracy.

She highlighted the higher number of women among the students receiving degrees at the convocation as well as among those currently studying at the university. “This is the picture of a changing India, which is visible in most of the higher educational institutions across the country,” she added.

At the same time, she emphasised that those daughters who are not part of the traditional workforce are also equally important, are working for building the future of the country and deserve equal respect, she said.

She said it was not just enough to move forward in life. While doing so, the students should not forget their parents, teachers and friends without whose participation, they would not have been successful. “Never detach from your roots”, she said.