Introduction: The young men of today are the citizens of tomorrow. In course of time, they will take the place of our present leaders and administrators. What a nation would be in future depends upon how her young men and women would be themselves in the early part of their life. It is during the student life that he or she lays the foundation of his or her character or personality.
Students and Free India: in free India, duties and responsibilities of all the Indians have increased because rights and duties are co-related. But students have to play a special part and their duties and responsibilities are heavier than those of others. During the war of independence, students remained in the forefront and played a glorious role but now, conditions have fully changed. Hence, their outlook towards life should also be changed. Before 1947, students had to destroy the British empire. Now, they have to construct a new nation removing poverty, misery, illiteracy, inequality and corruption. It is the time for peace and hard work.
Indulgence in Violence and Lawlessness: The students of today have not realized fully the significance of this change. Their activities have been more undesirable and objectionable. They have become highly irresponsible and undisciplined. In many cities of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, students staged strikes and indulged in activities of violence and lawlessness with the result that the police had to use force to bring the situation under control. No logic can justify the brutal attack on teachers by students. If it is justified, then we are going back to the primitive stage of human civilization.
What does India need at present?: What the nation needs at present is constructive work for all sided development and prosperity. It is only hard and selfless work which will pave the way to industrial and economic progress. If we have the dream before us to stand out among the mighty nations of the world, we must be prepared for regular and planned work keeping ourselves above greed, corruption and selfishness. The students should keep in mind with a sense patriotism that modern India needs good teachers, engineers, doctors, technicians and social workers. No aim can be fulfilled and no goal can be reached in life without being disciplined physically, mentally and morally. If the students have a sincere desire to shape the future of their motherland, they should first shape their own personality.
Conclusion: Hard Work and Honesty: the west leads the world even now in medicine, surgery, engineering and industry. The people of the east have eternal faith in fate or luck. Hence, they are idle and sluggish. They are fatalists and do not apply their energies to hard work. On the other hand, they imitate the high standard of living of the foreign countries and on the other, they are idle and lethargic. The result is that they adopt unfair means to reach the high standard of living. The students of modern India have to cultivate in them two great qualities-hard work and honesty-keeping themselves aloof from the dirty game of politics.