Kerala can become a world leader in higher education: President Mukherjee

Asserting that Kerala is in the forefront of social development, President Pranab Mukherjee said on Friday that time has come for the state to show its mettle by becoming a world leader in higher education as well.

President Mukherjee inaugurated the bicentenary celebrations of CMS College and laid the foundation stone of its bicentenary block today here.

Speaking on the occasion, the President said CMS College has been the source of strong currents of knowledge and critical inquiry that have moulded the scholastic and socio-cultural landscape of Kerala as well as propelled the State to the forefront of social development.

"Over the years, it has attracted distinguished faculty, with unswerving commitment to their profession. Its students have at the same time distinguished themselves in various fields, achieving distinction in academics as well as cultural and sports activities. There is however little room for complacency. Higher education is the key to making available a large pool of skilled manpower essential for our economic development," he said.

The President said that Kerala has been a pioneer and a path-breaker in many fields. Universal literacy and total primary education has been achieved and its success in the field of literacy and school education has, however, not been matched by its achievements in higher education.

"The demands of higher education in our country can be met only if private sector participates equally with the public sector institutions. The private sector has played a key role in higher education in many countries. Top international universities including Harvard, Yale and Stanford are the result of private sector efforts," he said.

He added that if India has to be one of the front ranking nations in the world, the way ahead is only through a robust education system and the educational institutions must be at the cutting edge in research, innovation and technological developments.