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Bengaluru, October 14 (IANS) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said progress is impossible in a society steeped in caste hierarchy and a scientific mindset is necessary to move ahead.
“Education and talent don’t belong to one’s family – all they need are opportunities,” he said.
He made these remarks while inaugurating a new academic building constructed under the RUSA project at Nripatunga University.
Citing history, he said that Valmiki, the author of Ramayana, belonged to the Bidar caste, while Vyas, the author of the Mahabharata, belonged to the Besta community. This shows that education and talent do not belong to any particular group – opportunities are needed. By developing rational and scientific thinking, both personal and social progress is possible. He called upon science students to lead the society in this direction.
He warned that the declining number of students studying science was worrying. Scientific mindset and science education are essential for the progress of both society and nation.
CM Siddaramaiah also remarked that it is a serious problem when even science students fall into superstitions and blind rituals. If someone studying science still believed in astrology and karmic theories, he questioned whether his scientific education had any value.
He reminded that long ago, Basavadi Sharanas had called for the rejection of superstition and blind practices. “Yet, superstitions persist even today. This is because our society is built around caste hierarchy, and elite classes reinforce this hierarchy, thereby perpetuating superstitions,” he said.
Siddaramaiah said that when he first became the Chief Minister, he had tried to implement the “Superstition Prohibition Act”, but it was not possible due to deep-rooted social and elite resistance.
He pointed out that it is disastrous when science students lack a scientific mindset. He said, if science students still believe in superstition, astrology and karma, then their education is truly ruined.
The CM highlighted that former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had the far-sighted vision of developing a scientific mindset for the youth of the country and the educational achievements required for this.
The newly inaugurated seven-storey building was constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 52 crore. The government has also approved the proposal to construct the eighth floor at an additional cost of Rs 8 crore.
–IANS
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