National Education Day is celebrated every year in honor of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, India’s first education minister, who was born on November 11. The theme of the National Education Day in 2022 is ‘Changing course, transforming education’. On this occasion, let’s get acquainted with the educational qualifications of the freedom fighter.
Born Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin on November 11, 1888 in Mecca, he was appointed as the first union minister of education of independent India on August 15, 1947. His tenure ended on February 2, 1958. A freedom fighter, an eminent educator and a journalist, Azad was a home-schooled and self-taught man.
Maulana Azad received his first formal education in Arabic, Persian and Urdu with theological orientation. He mastered many languages, including Arabic, Bengali, Persian and English. An avid and determined student, Azad was also trained in various subjects such as mathematics, philosophy, world history and science by teachers hired by his family.
India’s first education minister, Azad, became active in journalism when he was in his late teens, and in 1912 he began publishing a weekly Urdu newspaper in Calcutta, the Al-Hilal (The Crescent). The weekly was used as a weapon to attack and question British policy. The publication became hugely popular with the masses, so much so that the British finally banned it in 1914.
Undeterred by this move, Azad soon started another weekly, Al-Balagh, which ran until it was extracted under the Defense of India Regulations in 1916. The governments of Bombay, Punjab, Delhi and the United Provinces had banned his entry and he was deported to Bihar until 1920. Despite censorship, he found ways to rebel against British activities with the power of his pen.
Education remained a priority for Azad at all times. In an effort to implement his vision of educating more people in India, Azad had also established “the adult education board” to facilitate education for uneducated adults. He later founded several institutions such as the illustrious Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi.
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