Writer Vijaya Sridhar has said that an education system that lays equal emphasis on the enrichment of intellectual and emotional faculties of the children was the need of the hour.
She was delivering the presidential address at the district-level Kannada Sahitya Sammelana held in the city on Monday.
She said that scoring good marks in the exam should not become the sole purpose of education. The children should be apprised of the rich culture and tradition of the land and their obligations towards the environment and the society. An educated person who has knowledge of the cultural tradition of the land and is sensitive to the problems faced by the common people can bring positive changes in the society. In the present employment scenario, the youths with emotional intelligence are in great demand and are offered good jobs, she said.
Regret
Expressing regret over the decline in enrolment to Kannada medium schools, she pressed the State government to take determined decisions to save Kannada medium education. She said that women writers in Kannada are experimenting with diverse themes in recent times. She also called upon the women writers to strive to create awareness on the evils of drug and alcohol addiction through their literary works.
Speaking on the occasion, writer Sannarama demanded implementation of the Dr. Sarojini Mahishi report on reservation of jobs for Kannadigas in the private sector.
Jayaprakash Mavinakuli, writer, who had presided over the previous Sammelana; K.B. Sivakumar, Deputy Commissioner; D.S. Arun, chairman of Karnataka Arya Vaishya Community Development Corporation; C.S. Shadakshari, president of Karnataka State Government Employees Association; and D.B. Shankarappa, president of Kannada Sahitya Parishat district unit, were present.
Earlier in the day, Ms. Sridhar was taken in a procession through the main streets of the city. The procession started at Ramanna Shreshty Park and concluded at Mahaveer Circle. Performances by dollukunitha, kolata and other folk art troupes was the highlight of the procession.