Education should not be sold or restricted to some, says Stalin

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Sunday said, “Education should not be sold as a commodity or restricted to only a few, but should be made available even to the poor and downtrodden. Education is their weapon.” He was speaking an event held on the Tamil Nadu Open University campus at Saidapet here in honour of former Manonmaniam Sundaranar University Vice-Chancellor V. Vasanthi Devi, who died recently.

In his virtual speech, he said the actions of his government were indeed tributes to her. “Dr. Vasanthi Devi undertook several initiatives for the education of the poor,” he said.

Mr. Stalin recalled the contributions of the former V-C in taking education to the underprivileged. Her actions served several institutions and she insisted on reforms and equality in education, he said. “Even after her retirement, she worked for education and human rights.” “We have released the State Education Policy so that the thoughts of academic experts are made actionable,” he added.

Speaking at the event, CPI(M) leader K. Balakrishnan said Vasanthi Devi worked tirelessly for the people.

“In a world where education is being privatised, destroyed, and the right to education is being taken away, Vasanthi Devi worked to safeguard education till the very end,” he said.

School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi also spoke virtually at the meeting. CPI(M) leader P. Shanmugam; retired High Court judge Justice D. Hariparanthaman, Chairperson of State Commission for Women A.S. Kumari, human rights defender Henri Tiphagne, founder of AhaGuru Education Technology Balaji Sampath, and economist Venkatesh Athreya were among those who participated.

The event was organised by over 35 organisations including Aid India, Arappor Iyyakkam, Palli Kalvi Pathukappu Iyakkam, and Campaign Against Child Labour.