Prime Minister of India - Dr. Manmohan Singh

PM's remarks at the meeting with Awardee Teachers on the occasion of Teachers' Day

"I am very happy to be with you today on the occasion of Teachers' Day. As you know, today is the birthday of our former President Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, who was a man of great wisdom and a teacher of extraordinary capabilities. His life and work are a source of abiding inspiration for all of us.

Today we express our gratitude to our teachers and honour them for their immense contribution to the processes of nation building. I extend my very warm greetings to all teachers of our country on the occasion of Teachers' Day.

I started my career as a teacher and teaching has always been very close to my heart. I am therefore especially happy to have this opportunity to meet the outstanding teachers who are to be honoured today for their meritorious services and contribution to the cause of school education. These National Awards are a small token of our gratitude to our teaching fraternity. I congratulate the awardee teachers and wish them all the best for the future.

Our Government is committed to providing quality education to all our children. The Right to Education legislation that we have enacted has the potential to transform our schools and the lives of our children. The implementation of this legislation is not just a matter of providing more resources; it is the dedication and commitment of our teachers that will ultimately help us to achieve its goals and objectives.

Teachers have a very critical role to play in shaping the future of India. It is they who inculcate moral values in our children and inspire them to high ideals of patriotism, communal harmony and commitment to the cause of social justice. It is they who awaken in children the hunger for knowledge. They have the power to develop in our children the ability to contribute to our society and the processes of nation building.

In the coming time more and more children with diverse backgrounds will enter the school system. Your challenge therefore will be to work towards a democratic classroom in which all children participate in the learning processes as equal partners.

While educating our children and young adults, we must maintain a balance between tradition and modernity. As teachers you will need to ensure that our unique cultural heritage is preserved while preparing the children for global citizenship. Our effort should be to inculcate in the children not only high moral values but also progressive, rational attitudes which enable them to compete with others in the globalized world that we live in.

I once again congratulate all the awardee teachers for this very prestigious National Award. I wish you all success in your future endeavours."