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I take it back: Prakash Javadekar on his ‘don’t come with a bowl’ comment
While urging educational institutes to utilise alumni associations, Prakash Javadekar said there were some institutes that keep approaching the government with a bowl seeking help.
Two days after the Union minister for human resource development (HRD) Prakash Javadekar was caught in a controversy for a comment on government fund allocation to educational institutes, the minister on Sunday, released an official clarification. Javadekar, had on Friday during a school function in Pune, made a statement that educational institutes should utilise alumni associations for financial support instead of coming to the government with a “begging bowl”.
In response to the questions raised over his comment, Javadekar, said, “Two days ago, there was a misunderstanding regarding a comment I made at a school function in Pune. My statement about the government expenditure on education was misinterpreted. I did not mean that the government will not spend on education and that only the former students should spend on it. The government continues to focus largely on education and will increase the same in the coming future. The current Modi government has been showing this positive trend for the last four years, with almost 70 per cent of its spending towards education. This shows that we want to continue expenditure towards education. But, at the same time, what I wanted to imply is that the alumni should largely contribute to its alma mater, and the educational institutions should strengthen their alumni base.”
“But, having said that, I also realise that the use of the term, ‘begging bowl’ was wrong, and so I take it back,” he added.
During an event at a city school, Jnana Prabhodini Prashala (School), Javadekar had said, “Schools like Jnana Prabodhini have rightly utilised their strong alumni base, and other institutions should take their example and strengthen their alumni associations for industry experience and funds, instead of coming to the government with a bowl seeking help.”
He had argued that the alumni, who have excelled in their respective fields, serve as important source of funds and industry experience, valuable for the school or institution’s academic and infrastructural betterment.
