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Don’t become tech slaves: PM to students

Asks students to reserve gadget-free hour a day | Event live streamed in 25 countries

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Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 20

Exams not end of life, says Modi

Examination is a window, a stop. It is not the end of life. You can overcome stress by concentrating on doing something rather than obsessing about becoming something. It is when we see exams as linked to our ambitions that we feel frustrated. — Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today cautioned students against becoming slaves of technology and asked them to take control of gadgets rather than the way round.

“Can you reserve one gadget-free hour in your day? Can parents designate one gadget-free room at homes? Let us use technology like a friend to ease our lives but never allow ourselves to become robots,” PM Modi said addressing the third edition of the HRD Ministry’s flagship “Pariksha pe charcha” event where he tips higher secondary students on ways to beat exam stress.

The two-hour interactive at the Talkatora stadium had 2,000 students in attendance and the event was live streamed to government schools across 37 states and UTs and 25 countries. HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal said over 15 crore students were tuned in today.

Answering student queries, the PM said exams were not the be all and end all of lives. “Examination is a window, a stop. It is not the end of life. You can overcome stress by concentrating on doing something rather than obsessing about becoming something. It is when we see exams as linked to our ambitions that we feel frustrated,” he added.

He cited Chandrayaan II to stress the power of converting failure into opportunity. “I was told not to be part of the occasion when Chandrayaan II was to land on the moon. Everyone said there was no surety of success of the mission and I said that’s precisely why I should go. If you fail, it only means you’re on course to success,” the PM said mentioning victories cricketers Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Anil Kumble won for India in difficult matches.

He laid stress on extra-curricular activities urging parents not to push wards to take up “glamour driven co-curricular activities”.

“Meeting youngsters is an education for me,” the PM said urging students to awaken to duties towards the nation. “You will be in leadership roles when India marks 100 years of Independence in 2047. Your rights are contained in your duties. When a teacher teaches well he protects the rights of students. We can do our duty also by pledging to buy local until 2022 when we celebrate 75 years of freedom. People often tend to throw their garbage at another person’s door. That doesn’t translate into the fulfillment of national duty,” the PM said. He also asked students to never feel low.

Arpit Kaur from Government Senior Secondary School, Maluka, Punjab, was among the few students who got a chance to pose queries to the PM today. She asked how to get over the fear of competitive exams.

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