NCC taught me how to be disciplined, patriotic: Kamat

PANJIM, JUNE 30
Chief Minister Digambar Kamat was nostalgic on Wednesday when he remembered his school days of how he used to dress up in National Cadet Corps (NCC) uniform and cycle his way to school.
“Those were the days, when I felt proud in the uniform. I knew people were looking at me. I was soldier of the nation,” Kamat said.
However, he lamented that today NCC students are ashamed of wearing uniform. “They carry uniforms in bags and wear them only in school premises. They feel humiliated to wear and move around in the society,” Kamat said.
Chief Minister felt proud of being an NCC student during his school days. “NCC taught me how to be disciplined and patriotic. I am very much thankful to NCC,” he maintained.
Kamat was addressing ‘The Navhind Times Ex-NCC Achievers Award 2010’, gathering organised by State Ex-Cadets NCC Association (SENA) in association with ‘The Navhind Times’.
Kamat believes that there is need of making NCC compulsory for the students in the State. “Going on field makes us tough and discipline and this is exactly what today’s youth need,” he said.
He urged parents to encourage their children to be part of NCC, which will make every single child a good patriotic citizen.
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Pratapsing Rane was awarded with The Navhind Times Ex-NCC Achievers Award 2010 for his achievements in public life.
Talking on the occasion, he said that youth of today need lot of training, education and guidance to win over all the curses of society like poverty, illiteracy, global warming and terrorism.
“This will help in taking the country on a great height. People now, look at India as country of intellectuals and the pride must be continued,” he said.
Apart from Rane, the awards were also given in the field of police personnel, sports, literature, civil service and law.
In the field of police personnel Flinton D’Souza, chief secretary officer in Dempo Company and Superintendent of Police, South Allen D’Sa were awarded. While director of Women and Child Commission Sanjiv Gadkar (civil service), practicing lawyer Ajit Singh Rane (law) and John Aguiar (literature) were also honoured.
Special guest of the function, commissioner of NRI Affairs, Eduardo Faleiro urged youth to join field of Army and civil service, which gives prestige for serving nation.
“There is need to create awareness among youth to be a military person and serve the nation. If you think that the salary is low, then as per the sixth pay commission, the starting salary of a commissioned officer in the Armed Force is Rs 35,000 and goes upto Rs 1 lakh,” he said.
For this, he said that NCC should be compulsory for atleast two years at the school level.
Faleiro pointed out that in the last budget speech, chief minister had announced setting up of administrative training institute in the State.
“I feel, along with setting up of institution, scholarship may be awarded by the government to the deserving candidates to prepare themselves for the centre civil service examination at reputed coaching centers like Delhi and Mumbai,” he stated.
The other members present on the occasion were director of International Centre, Nandini Sahai, chairman of Dempo Group of Companies Pallavi Dempo, SENA president Avinash Bhonsle and Secretary Pramod Naik.