Guard against ‘Dharmadroha,’ Puri seer advises Odisha B school students

Reported by Sandeep Sarangi
Bhubaneswar, May 21:

Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalananda Saraswati on Wednesday advised educational institutions to refrain from doing ‘Dharmadroha’.

Addressing the convocation ceremony of Regional College of Management (RCM) in the Odisha capital, the Shankaracharya said; “Those who use their knowledge, education and position only for self-centered, materialistic development, should be treated as ‘Dharmadrohis’. In that sense, the educational institutions are today producing Dharmadrohis. Not only do you have to look at the system and its benefits, but also focus at the limitations of the system to ensure educational institutes avoid the ‘Dharmadroha’,” advised the seer.

He had a piece of advice for governments too. “Can’t there be development without polluting the environment and without price rise?  Governments, irrespective of who is in power, take liberties with environment, which we cannot allow,” he added.

Taking a dig at the Odisha Government, the Guru said, “On one hand the state government is meddling with the rights and activities of Sankaracharya, but in the other hand I am invited to address convocation ceremony which is usually addressed by Chief Ministers, Governors..”.

Speaking on the occasion, Puri Pitha Parishad Upadhakhsya Prasanta Acharya went all guns blazing against the state government. He took strong objection to the activities of state government officers in the Jagannath temple administration and said, “The managers and officers are supposed to serve. But the babus think they are the owners.”

Another Upadhakhsya of Puri Pitha Parishad Prafulla Rath went a step further by making a politically loaded statement. “Democracy has become demonocracy”, he said calling for  a ban on cow slaughter.

Rath, however, complimented the RCM management for breaking the tradition of inviting politicians to convocation ceremony and instead choosing to invite the highest Guru of Sanatan Dharma.

Prabir Pal, Secretary of Regional College of Management, Bhubaneswar had a few pieces of advice for the graduating students and highlighted the advantages of RCM in his address.

“The Business World today requires managers who would not only contribute to their organizations but also will provide new direction and leadership to the society to make it better place to live in,” said Pal.

On their big day, the students braved the hot summer and were quite ecstatic and camera-happy. Some were a bit nostalgic too.

“It has been a wonderful journey here at RCM. The faculties were extremely helpful and so were the friends. I will cherish the moments forever in my life,” said Rashmi, a student from Bihar who graduated from the institute.

The same sentiment was also echoed by Barsa Swony Choudhary who graduated from the institute and was there to attend the convocation ceremony.

RCM Bhubaneswar is the oldest and the first management institute in the state of Orissa established in the year 1982. It is the first management institute in Eastern India to be conferred autonomous status by the University Grants Commission. It has been placed amongst the top 25 B-schools in the country and an ‘A’ category B-school for over a decade by AIMA-IMRB and CSR-GHRDC surveys.