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Former Army chief General VK Singh in Ranchi on Saturday. Picture by Prashant Mitra
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Ranchi, Oct. 6: It was an encounter of the kind the general may not have experienced in his career as a soldier.
Today, former Army chief General V.K. Singh fielded questions from students of Guru Nanak Higher Secondary School in the capital, in a session that saw the veteran speaking on myriad topics.
“Sir, you said ours is a young nation but we have always been ruled by old people. Why so?” asked a youngster. “You are right, all must have a retirement age. They should also retire and make room for younger people,” the general replied, adding that spring comes after only after the fall (patjhar). Earlier, General Singh had said with over 70 per cent of our population being under 40 years of age, India was a young nation.
He also advised the students not to bow their heads in shame but to look up “so that you can see what is good or bad”.
“Why do you think the movement started by Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev fizzled out,” was another query. “They need more support, support them,” the general said.
One student wanted to know who was responsible for the loot and plunder of national wealth that one kept hearing about. “It is due to the internal weakness of our society,” General Singh replied and advised them to overcome it. India was once known for good things but has now been let down due to this internal weakness, he added.
During his address, Singh explained how the country always suffered from internal weakness. “Clive won the Battle of Plassey though he did not even have one-fifth of Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah’s force. When the British soldiers were taking away the Nawab’s men as prisoners, hordes of people came to witness the scene. Had they so wished, those people could have stoned the Britishers to death,” he said.
The general advised the students to put stress on character building, discipline and to acquire a national outlook.
He asked them pursue this goal tirelessly, adding: “Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit,” quoting Lord Alfred Tennyson.
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