The Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu has said that bridging the urban rural divide is crucial for uniform development and unity of the country. He was addressing the gathering at the 103rd Birth Anniversary Celebrations of His Holiness Jagadguru Sri Shivarathri Rajendra Mahaswamiji, in Mysuru today. He also inaugurated the new building of Gurukula at the holy place of Suttur. The Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri H.D. Kumaraswamy and other dignitaries were present on the occasion. Calling his Holiness Dr. Rajendra Mahaswamiji’s a visionary beyond ordinary, the Vice President said that he was a Guru in the real sense of the term and thought ahead of his times and dreamt of India which is rich in its heritage but poor in material wellbeing.The Vice President said that Maths like Suttur Srikshethra, Mysore are tirelessly working and contributing immensely to keep the spiritual torch burning. He also lauded the math for providing education & health for people in rural Karnataka and said that voluntary organizations and private sector must supplement the efforts of government in providing amenities and services.
The Vice President said that the Gurukula system symbolises the extraordinary relationship between Guru and student and no other culture accords such importance to Guru-Sishiya parampara as we do in India. It is one of the most unique and ancient traditions of India and a guru is considered as God in human form and accorded the highest respect in the social hierarchy next to parents, he added.Saying that learning under a Guru is like a sacred act of penance, the Vice President said that the ancient Gurukula system has to be re-introduced across the country and the private sector and NGOs must come forward in a big way to set up such Gurukulas. Education has the power to transform Rural India and development must improve lives of people living in rural India, he added.The Vice President said that agriculture is our basic culture and it is the backbone of our economy. We need to take steps to make it economically viable and we must make united efforts to improve lives of farmers, he added.