New Delhi: Union Minister Kapil Sibal, who has been given additional charge of the high-profile Telecom Ministry, on Monday said his "first love" is Human Resource Development portfolio, whose handling had earned him praise from the Prime Minister.
"You were talking about the other Ministries I am involved in, but I can tell you that this (the HRD Ministry) is my first love and my last love," Sibal said at a function here after felicitating Kendriya Vidyalaya teachers.
He felt the HRD Ministry is dear to him because "there is nothing more important than building India`s future" and lamented that the political establishment was yet to recognise the importance of the teaching community for the country.
Human resource is the ultimate foundation of all economy and growth, he said.
Observing that the coming decade would throw up more challenges for the teaching profession, he said teachers have to "reinvigorate" and empower themselves as they carry on this grand enterprise.
"As leaders of the political establishment, we really do not recognise the enormous importance of the teaching community in India... as they discharge on the onerous responsibility," he said while assuring that the government will reach out to the teachers to help them meet the challenges.
In the next 10 to 20 years, the nature of education is going to change considerably along with a parallel change in equation between students and teachers, the Minister noted.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who gave Sibal the additional charge of Telecom portfolio after A Raja resigned in the wake of alleged irregularities in the allocation of 2G spectrum, had recently praised the Minister for his zeal and dedication in handling the HRD ministry.
"I compliment and pay tribute to my colleague Kapil Sibal for the zeal, dedication and enthusiasm that he has brought to bear on the work of this most important ministry of union government that the human resource development ministry is," the Prime Minister had said during his address to national award winning teachers on the occasion of Teacher`s Day.
PTI
