CHENNAI: In the Meghdoot Hall of MOP Vaishnav College for Women, students listen to the speakers talk about Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in rapt attention. This October marks the 150th birth anniversary of the freedom fighter and Father of the Nation.
The winners of the oratorical competition, who had to speak on the topic ‘Father of the Nation’, were given prizes at the ceremony, which was followed by three speeches by the students. K Jyothsna from BA Journalism, Divyapriya from BA Sociology and Swetha Agarwal from BSc Computer Science spoke in English, Tamil and Hindi respectively. Their classmates cheered loudly after every speech.
Suguna Kiran, project coordinator of Vital for India spoke on the fundamental duties of the people as dictated in Article 51A of the Constitution of India, and differentiated them from the fundamental rights. She highlighted the eleven fundamental duties in the Constitution and explained that while these duties are not binding like the fundamental rights, it is important to adhere to and follow them in today’s political climate. “If we help make a clean nation, a nation that respects women, a nation that is equal to everybody and a nation in which untouchability is a thing of the past, we will march towards the top of the world,” she said.
Gandhian, philanthropist author and social worker Devendra Oza showed students some quotes by famous individuals on Gandhi and asked the students to pick and choose their favourites, and explain why. Quotes from Albert Einstein, Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Jawaharlal Nehru and Tagore were displayed.
Students’ choice
Gandhian, philanthropist author and social worker Devendra Oza showed students some quotes by famous individuals on Gandhi and asked the students to pick and choose their favourites