GUWAHATI, Feb 8 - Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today presented laptops as part of the Anundoram Barooah Award to students who obtained 75 per cent or above marks in the High School Leaving Certificate, High Madrassa, Senior Madrassa, Sanskrit Pravesika and Pali Examinations, 2018.
The awards were presented at a programme held at Sarusajai Stadium in the city. A total of 20,720 students across the State would be awarded laptops under the programme.
Stating that these laptops are being provided to meritorious students so that they can take advantage of new-age learning methods through internet, the Chief Minister urged the students to use these devices judiciously and for their betterment.
�Try to acquire as much knowledge as possible so that you can achieve success in any corner of the world and contribute in the process to make Assam the best State in the country,� he said.
Sonowal advised students to stay cautious about the perils of cyber crime and advised them to steer clear of harmful activities online.
Highlighting the changing employment scenario in the State as the production capacity of Numaligarh Refinery Limited is being upgraded from 3 MTPA to 9 MTPA with a landmark investment of Rs 22,594 crore by the Central government, Sonowal urged the students to pursue their careers with hard work and dedication so that they can be empowered to take advantage of this industrial revolution taking place in the State.
He also called upon the State�s youth to come forward for utilising the recently set up Assam Start up-The Nest incubation centre of the State government for becoming successful entrepreneurs who would become job creators instead of being job seekers.
�Lazy people cannot achieve success in life and therefore, young students must strive hard to acquire knowledge, which is power in this age of globalisation. Even fertile lands must be tilled for increasing agricultural production and therefore, the youth must harness their latent talents to achieve full potential,� the Chief Minister said.
Informing that the Advantage Assam: Global Investment Summit held last year dispelled the notion that investors do not want to come to Assam, Sonowal stated that MoUs worth Rs 79,000 crore were signed during the summit, out of which Rs 12,000 crore has already been invested in the State.
For empowering the youth of the State to take advantage of this scenario, skill training centres have been opened in every block of the State and a Skill City is being built at Mangaldai, which would impart skills to 10,000 youths each year in various trades, he informed.
Sonowal also said that today�s world was very competitive and to become successful, students must study for at least 10 hours a day. As Guwahati is being expanded into a State Capital Region and a gateway to South East Asia under the Act East Policy, students must strive hard to become better and take Assam into the high-growth trajectory.
Filmmaker Rima Das and athlete Hima Das have already proved that through dedication, sincerity and hard work, one can achieve success overcoming all obstacles, he asserted.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Siddhartha Bhattacharya urged the students to carry on with the same zeal they showed in the HSLC examinations, so that they can clear all future examinations with flying colours.
Many students who achieve success in HSLC fail to continue with the same spirit in subsequent examinations and therefore, young students must stay clear of all distractions and solely focus on achieving their career goals, Bhattacharya said.
Along with laptops, the Anundoram Barooah Award provides a free two-year internet connection with Wi-Fi dongle, two subscriptions of academic content for classes XI and XII, online learning, coaching of score improvement system for science stream, etc.
