By IANS
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday released a postage stamp commemorating eminent educationist J.P. Naik, describing him as a “revered teacher and a true and great institution builder”.
“Above all, he was a nationalist and a Gandhian, admired by his students and well-wishers all over the country,” the prime minister noted while releasing the stamp on the occasion of Teacher’s Day.
Tracing Naik’s professional life that began as a primary school teacher and culminated in his role as an outstanding educational planner, Manmohan Singh said: “It is a happy coincidence that he shared his birthday with another great educationist and teacher, our former Rashtrapatiji (president), Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.
“It gives me great pleasure that we honour two of our great educationists today,” he added.
Speaking about Naik’s role as “a great institution builder”, the prime minister said he helped build world-class research facilities in various state capitals including Thiruvananthapuram, Kolkata, Bangalore, Jaipur, Lucknow, Patna and Ahmedabad.
Among the many institutions Naik built was the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) that has “played a foundational role in the development of social science research across our country”, said Manmohan Singh, himself an economist.
Noting that Naik was a “true product of our freedom movement”, the prime minister said he was “deeply influenced” by the ideas and ideals of Mahatma Gandhi.
“The ideas he elaborated continue to have relevance for educational reforms and societal reforms even today. In our effort to vastly improve the educational standards of our people we need to pay heed once again to visionaries and institution builders like the late J.P. Naik,” Manmohan Singh added.
“With these words, I pay tribute to our teachers on this day and hope that men like Dr. J.P. Naik will continue to inspire our teaching community to work with dedication and commitment in the service of our people,” the prime minister said.