Dinanath High School and Junior College celebrated Vachan Divas recently, commemorating the birth anniversary of former President of India and eminent scientist Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. The programme aimed to cultivate a love for reading among students and highlight the importance of books in shaping knowledge, character and personality.
The programme featured Dr. Tejinder Singh Rawal as the esteemed guest speaker. He opened his address with a question that immediately drew the students into the discussion: What is humanity’s greatest invention? After considering the wheel, electricity, computers and artificial intelligence, he proposed the written word. Writing, he explained, enabled knowledge, wisdom and human experience to travel across generations, making a book one of humanity’s simplest time machines.
Drawing on Dr. Kalam’s Wings of Fire and Ignited Minds, Dr. Rawal told the students that the first shows how curiosity, education and determination can transform an individual’s life, while the second challenges young Indians to recognise their potential and help transform the nation. One book, he said, tells readers what Dr. Kalam achieved; the other asks what they themselves can achieve.
Dr. Rawal also addressed reading in an age of smartphones, social media and artificial intelligence. Technology can provide information quickly, he observed, but sustained reading develops concentration, imagination, empathy, critical thinking and independent judgement. Artificial intelligence can assist thinking, he said, but should not replace it. He encouraged students to choose books that genuinely interested them, begin with manageable goals and remain consistent so that reading would become enjoyable and lifelong rather than merely an academic requirement.
A major highlight was the 30-Day Reading Challenge. Dr. Rawal invited every student to read for 10 to 15 minutes each day, taking small and consistent steps towards a lasting habit. He reminded them that even a short period of daily reading can introduce new ideas, strengthen vocabulary and comprehension, and broaden perspective.
The students then raised their right hands and took a Reading Pledge, promising to read regularly, remain curious, ask questions, think independently, use technology wisely, learn something new every day and inspire others to read. The moment acquired special significance because the programme was held during the school’s Durga Puja celebrations, with the image of Goddess Durga forming the backdrop. Dr. Rawal connected the courage and strength symbolised by the Goddess with the intellectual strength that comes from knowledge, wisdom and enlightened thinking.
The programme concluded with renewed enthusiasm for reading and a powerful message: Read every day, learn every day, and grow every day. Dr. Rawal left the students with three thoughts: read to know the world, read to understand others and read to discover yourself. The initiative was a meaningful step towards nurturing young readers and keeping the spirit of Vachan Divas alive throughout the year.
The members of the management of Bengali Education Society, AHM Runa Ghosh, Supervisor Vaishali Gunasekharan, Administrator Anju Seth, congratulated the teacher incharge, Dr. Jyotimani Rocque and the librarian Sonali Nachankar for their efforts in taking up such an insightful program.
