Indians, knowledge consumers not producers: Naidu

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said that Indians were good consumers of knowledge but had to bring about a paradigm shift in the education system to become producers of it.

"Indian universities and Indian colleges have not made much progress in terms of becoming centres of innovation in the areas of science and technology," he said.

"Although boys and girls are able to acquire latest skills and are able to adapt themselves to meet the technical requirements of the industry, we are somehow lagging behind in unleashing innovations."

"In other words, we have become good knowledge consumers but we are not able to become knowledge producers," he said.

The Vice President was speaking at the convocation ceremony of the University College for Women here.

"We can become innovators and knowledge producers only when we bring about a paradigm shift in our education system and evolve an education system that provokes young minds into thinking that combines pursuit of knowledge with creativity, critical thinking and skills," he said.

"If there is a new software programme, we quickly learn it but we are not able to create a new one. We should not be imitators but creators."

He further said that the vision of Swami Vivekananda that women may just be put in a position to solve their own problems in their own way has come true as "Indian women are making strides in all fields".

Expressing his concern over gender inequality, he warned that subordination of women in various spheres would have serious negative consequences.

--IANS

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