Nobel Laureate Satyarthi at Apeejay Stya & Svran Dr Stya Paul Memorial Lecture 2018
New Delhi: In the recently held ‘Apeejay Stya & Svran Dr Stya Paul Memorial Lecture 2018’, at Apeejay School, Sheikh Sarai, New Delhi, Shri Kailash Satyarthi, Nobel Peace Laureate, commended the work of Dr Stya Paul, Founder Chairman of the Apeejay Education Society, being carried forward by his only child, Mrs Sushma Paul Berlia and the next generation.
Shri Kailash Satyarthi was delighted to share that his son and daughter as well as their respective spouses were educated at Apeejay Schools. He appreciated the value based quality education they received at Apeejay.
Mrs Sushma Paul Berlia, Co-Promoter & President, Apeejay Stya & Svran Group, said, “We remember Dr Stya Paul not only as my father and Founder Chairman of the Apeejay Education Society but as someone who left his footprints in the hearts & minds of countless people, not only as someone who achieved a lot in business and in contributing to society but as someone who never compromised on core human values.”
In a huge audience comprising esteemed dignitaries, distinguished guests, students, teachers and members of the Apeejay Stya & Svran Group, Shri Kailash Satyarthi gave the message that if our children are not safe, humanity is not safe.
Shri Kailash Satyarthi made a passionate plea to all for thinking about every child of the country as their own and to strive for their safety & security. He brought the house down with his clarion call, saying, “I refuse to accept that any child is born to work at the cost of childhood.” He recounted how under his aegis, Bachpan Bachao Andolan has rescued over 87,000 children from the scourge of bondage, trafficking and exploitative labour over the last four decades.
Apeejay Stya & Svran Dr Stya Paul Memorial Lecture series is dedicated to the memory of Dr Stya Paul and the values he stood for. He was a visionary, an eminent industrialist, educationist, freedom fighter & philanthropist and the Founder Chairman of the Apeejay Education Society.
The Memorial Lecture was also graced by Mr Aditya Berlia and Dr Neha Berlia, grandchildren of Dr Stya Paul and both, Co-Promoters of the Apeejay Stya & Svran Group. The august gathering also included industry stalwarts, bureaucrats, diplomats and noted academicians.
Espousing the cause of ‘Education for All’, Shri Kailash Satyarthi said, “Investment in education is the best investment a country can make”. He explained that even from an economic vantage point, the potential to earn increases in tandem with the level of education.
“We united organisations and governments of the world to begin the movement of ‘Global Campaign for Education’, as a result of all efforts we made, of which UNESCO was the lead agency, the number of students who were out of School came down from 130 million to 60 million as per the official figure”, Shri Satyarthi said.
The ILO (International Labour Organisation) Convention happened in 1999 as a result of the struggles & movements run by reformists like him and many child labours were adopted unanimously. Since then, the number of child labourers around the world has come down from 260 million to 150 million, so 110 million children got the benefit of it, Shri Satyarthi added.