Monday, 4 November 2013

An Essay on The Knowledge Society





                                The Knowledge Society

                                                                                                      A.P.J.Abdul Kalam

The recipient of Bharat Ratna, Dr A.P.J.Abdul Kalam is the former president of India.”The Knowledge Society” is an extract taken from his popular and famous book “Ignited Minds”. He received many honorary awards like Bharat Ratna, Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan.”Wings of Fire and India 2020”,”A Vision For The New Millennium” are some of his works. In this lesson, Kalam emphasizes that poverty can be rooted out only by striking a balance between the past heritage and present day knowledge. Kalam opines that India can reach the pinnacles of prosperity and glory by scrupulously following certain principles and applying modern technology.
                        Kalam opines that India is essentially a land of knowledge and it must rediscover itself its past legacy. No doubt, the foreign invasions and the colonial rule weakened India considerably. Knowledge has many forms and it is available at many places. It is available in academic institutions, at work places, from learning skills such as from artists, craftsmen, hakims, philosophers and saints and it is available from our heritage and history epics too.
                      Kalam says that Knowledge has always been the prime mover of prosperity and power. In India we had the tradition of transforming knowledge from guru to shishya and from the writings of the foreign travelers who visited Ancient Indian Universities like Nalanda. During the last century the world has changed from being an agricultural society to an industrial society. Thus technology played a vital role in the development of the society. While, in the 21st century, knowledge has become the primary production resource instead of capital and labour. Education, health-care and agriculture are taken ahead in the knowledge society. It promotes high productivity and rural prosperity. It helps even to create new avenues for employment..
                       The multiple technologies and appropriate management structures must work together to generate a knowledge society. India has left its impression in Information Technology and it will be much more developed in the years to come. Thus it adds a new feather to knowledge society. As a second component, young and dynamic leaders are required for establishing knowledge society. The most important mission for the knowledge society is India should become a super power by the year 2010.
                       If societal transformation and wealth generation are the two important parameters to make India as knowledge society, a third dimension has come to transform India itself into a super power. Kalam says that our communication network and information generators must be protected from electronic attacks. It involves a tremendous responsibility. It is very important that our knowledge and culture too help us this great task of making India a super power.


Meanings:-

emphasize                    = stress something as important
heritage                       = practices that are handed down from the past by tradition
pinnacle                        = the highest level or degree
prosperity                    = an economic state of growth with rising profits and full
                                        employment
glory                             = a state of high honor
scrupulously                  = with extreme care
legacy                           = money or something that one receive from after someone dies
invasion                         = stepping into a place/region/country in a forceful way
epic                               = a long narrative poem telling of a hero’s deeds
hakim                            = a Muslim physician(medical practitioner)
colonial rule                  = the rule of a country which exploitates, imposes its authority
                                        towards a weaker country
transformation             = change in form, appearance, or nature of something
avenues                         = a line of approach; sources
adding a new feather    = adding a new advantage (to something)
parameter                     = any factor that defines a system and determines its
                                         performance
tremendous                   = extreme in degree or extent or impact
                                        
                                        










                                                                                                           Vali Basha Shaik

No comments:

Post a Comment