Almost 75 years after Consitution was adopted, what does education mean for nation-building?

India has the largest colonisation successful the world. Forty-seven per cent of Indians are beneath the property of 25. Two-thirds person been calved aft liberalisation. In this signifier of India’s demographic transition, universities are influential institutions that indispensable lend to the translation of society. A single-minded absorption connected subjects and courses comprising science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) and medicine cannot nutrient the desired translation successful the worth strategy of our society.

Education indispensable not beryllium constricted to linking each learning lone to occupation opportunities and instrumentally applying cognition for monetary gains without appreciating its intrinsic worth successful shaping the benignant of citizens that our republic requires. Schools and universities indispensable supply important cognition astir the Constitution successful each Indian languages. Achieving this extremity indispensable beryllium a apical argumentation priority.

India commemorates the 75th day of the adoption of its Constitution this year. Our higher acquisition ecosystem, comprising much than 1,100 universities and astir 50,000 colleges, indispensable prioritise the survey of the Constitution. The Viksit Bharat Vision for 2047 should absorption connected educating young India to admit the values inherent successful the Constitution and wherefore the papers is the lodestar for improvement and societal transformation.

I tin adduce 5 compelling reasons wherefore our universities should amended their students astir the Constitution’s history, philosophy, and improvement and its value successful recognising and enforcing people’s cardinal rights and freedoms.

One, the Constitution arsenic a tract for creating corporate consciousness. India is not a classical federation. Some continuing struggles and synergies pass the improvement of the thought of deliberative ideology successful the country. Social and economical diverseness has contributed to differing economical and quality improvement levels crossed the states. As we commemorate the 75th anniversary, we indispensable physique a much captious corporate consciousness of our Constitution that binds america arsenic people.

This consciousness volition person a nonstop and substantive bearing connected promoting progressive nation-building ideas portion shielding america from the consequences of sectarian perspectives. The framers of our Constitution were conscious of the imperative of creating a corporate consciousness of the radical of India. They did that by providing flexibility and state to prosecute a pluralistic thought of nation-building.

Two, the Constitution arsenic a model for individuality creation. The Constitution has helped america to create, nurture and grow an Indian identity. Many of its provisions absorption connected protecting rights and freedoms and illustrating their inherent intent for establishing a nation. The pluralistic individuality of the radical of India is reflected successful the values that permeate the Constitution, particularly its Preamble.

In an influential nonfiction titled The emergence of state-nations, Alfred Stepan, Juan J Linz, and Yogendra Yadav observed, “…‘State-nation’ policies impact creating a consciousness of belonging (or ‘we-feeling’) with respect to the statewide governmental community, portion simultaneously creating organization safeguards for respecting and protecting politically salient socio taste diversities. The ‘we-feeling’ whitethorn instrumentality the signifier of defining a tradition, history, and shared civilization successful an inclusive manner, with each citizens encouraged to consciousness a consciousness of attachment to communal symbols of the authorities and immoderate signifier of ‘constitutional patriotism’.”

An Indian individuality that promotes values of “constitutional patriotism” should specify our aspiration to make ideas for nation-building. Universities indispensable signifier that Indian individuality done acquisition and the process of learning.

Three, the Constitution arsenic a crushed for celebrating diversity. The Constitution, peculiarly its provisions connected equality and non-discrimination, recognises the worth of diversity. Universities are the due institutions for promoting diversity. However, the diverseness promoted successful universities indispensable beryllium astir lived and shared experiences. It is astir knowing and appreciating that India is simply a onshore of divers interests and aggregate persuasions. The accidental to survey the Constitution and the lived acquisition of gathering and interacting with divers radical tin assistance physique an informed and enlightened citizenry.

Four, the Constitution arsenic an instrumentality of societal and governmental empowerment. By abolishing untouchability successful Article 17, the Constitution shook the foundations of the signifier of historically evolved caste-based discrimination. But it did not halt there. It besides made it an offence to origin immoderate disablement arising due to the fact that of “untouchability”. The imaginativeness of the makers of the Constitution was far-sighted capable to recognise that the evil of untouchability cannot beryllium quelled by simply proscribing it. The Constitution sends a almighty connection to our federation that its foundations are the values of liberty, equality and fraternity. Universities are places wherever values are formed, shaped and changed. There is nary amended spot wherever the survey of law values tin person a almighty impact.

Five, the Constitution arsenic the ground for societal justice. The taxable of societal justness runs passim the Constitution. As India celebrates the 75th day of adopting the Constitution, the aspiration to beforehand the origin of societal justness has ne'er been much critical. Universities are institutions wherever done transformative education, the societal operation tin beryllium challenged and a caller procreation tin go participants successful an effort to execute societal justice.

The law task of promoting societal justness tin beryllium realised lone erstwhile higher acquisition institutions institutionalise these ideas among the youth. India’s young radical indispensable clasp the imaginativeness of gathering an egalitarian society.

The 75th day of the Constitution should assistance america reimagine our universities to absorption connected acquisition and probe relating to its ideals and aspirations. It should amended and empower the younker to recognize and admit the humanities struggles that resulted successful our state and the imaginativeness of the framers of the Constitution starring to the gathering of the Republic of India.

The writer is founding Vice Chancellor of OP Jindal Global University and Dean of Jindal Global Law School. JGU is establishing India’s First Constitution Museum astatine its University Campus successful Sonipat, Haryana. Views are personal.