Kochi: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu said on Monday that community service must be made mandatory for pupils in both public and private institutions since it will help them develop a sharing and caring attitude in their interactions with others. "Today, there is an urgent need to instill the sense of service in the kids of this country from an early age. Once the pandemic has passed and normalcy has returned, I believe that government and private schools should make community service mandatory for pupils for at least two to three weeks," the Vice President added.

He was addressing as the special guest at a celebration held near here to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the death of St Kuriakose Elias Chavara, a spiritual leader and social reformer from Kerala's Catholic community. The Vice President stated that instilling a spirit of service in children at an early age will help them develop a sharing and caring attitude in their interactions with others.

The Vice President praised the achievements of visionary spiritual leaders such as Sree Narayana Guru, a great social reformer, and St Chavara in many sectors, and urged other states to learn from Kerala in the areas of education, social justice, and women's empowerment.

"I'd like to use this opportunity to encourage other states to follow Kerala's lead in the areas of education, social justice, and women's empowerment, as indicated in Saint Chavara and Narayana Guru's pioneering programmes. Their groundbreaking work demonstrates that any state can be converted into a growth and progress engine, and that this can be accomplished through the social and educational empowerment of women and youth from lower socioeconomic backgrounds," Naidu stated.

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