Titled ‘Bangalore Days’, this poem by Nidhi Bhavsar of Grade IX, Ekya School JP Nagar reflects on the early glories of a city that is now a shadow of its former self, thanks to endless urbanization.
Bangalore, once a paradise.
Buildings were rarely seen.
Rain was found in abundance,
Its citizens always with umbrellas.
No more is it a haven,
A stressed man’s refuge.
It is now a land with pollution and dust,
A major city but without its glory.
May Bangalore regain its legacy,
May it flourish again as the garden city,
Maybe the destiny of this great city will change,
It may just become green again.
The beautiful weather, the picturesque scenery,
It may all come back to regain its destiny.
The peaceful roads, the tiny, cozy houses,
It may all return, Bangalore’s beautiful legacy.
....nature must obey necessity, men at some time are masters of their fates, the fault….is not in our stars, but in ourselves that we are underlings.Let’s take a step back and think. Deep inside, is this what the parent-conscience desires to teach our children? The answer is a screaming “NO”. But, the saga continues, thanks to the rigid education framework and its evaluation system; we are losing the “humane” touch of human beings! Turning back to the protagonist of our life-athon, we unknowingly ignore our most prized possession- the child /student; the one actually running the race. Typically, if you ask a student, why do you go to school? Or why do you learn science? The answer that pops out is – because I want to be a doctor or an engineer. And, why do you want to become a doctor or an engineer? The answer is a deafening silence coupled with a perplexed expression. With the lack of self-reliant thinking, we are churning out professionals who CANNOT reason. Scarily, unable to differentiate between good and bad for their own selves, let alone the world around them. And yet, we wonder why our planet is spinning every second towards a point of no return! Probably, it is high time we break the barriers of compartmentalized education - language, history, geography, science, math, economics, life skills or art, to make it more comprehensive, more enriching. For a better planet, we need people, who can learn from the success and mistakes our forefathers made (history); value every drop of water/every bit of air our planet creates to be the only inhabitable planet in our solar system (geography); to discovering natural sustainable sources of energy compatible to the varied forms of life (science) and account for it (math). None of this is possible, without articulated speech (language). Importantly, it is essential to introspect, respect and connect ones “thoughts”, using the various forms of art and life skills, that one could acquire through experiential learning. To conclude, “I fear the day technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots”- Albert Einstein (1879-1955). Which way are we heading? Dr. Rakhi Roy is a scientist at the Centre for Brain Development and Repair, Institute of Stem cell biology and Regenerative medicine, Bangalore, India where she works on using stem cell-based technologies to develop platforms for understanding neuro-developmental disorders. A Gold medalist in Human Physiology from the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi and a Ph.D. from Manipal University, Dr. Pal has more than 10 years of experience in the field of stem cell biology with a particular interest in neurological disorders. She not only has multiple publications and patents to her name but also possesses a unique blend of both industry and academic experiences. Dr.Rakhi, parent of Ekya, was invited to be our guest writer on the Parents of Ekya feature. Interested parents who would like to write for us can shoot us a mail on communications@ekyaschools.com
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