SHILLONG, April 27 - Meghalaya Governor V Shanmuganathan today said corruption has plagued the country and urged students to take a pledge not to take bribe in their lifetime.
Speaking at the 115th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda�s visit to Shillong here at the historic Quinton Hall, the Governor asked them to take the pledge. The students rose up and pledged: �I will not take bribe in my life.�
He said some of the ideals of Swamiji were �renunciation and sacrifice�, which the monks of Ramakrishna Mission still follow. The Governor said the students should follow these two ideals and work selflessly for the society and mustn�t indulge in corrupt practices for the larger good of the society.
Highlighting the high infant mortality rate in the State, Shanmuganathan said, the students should do their bit to reverse this dangerous trend. �You students can go to some villages, coordinate with the hospitals and carry out campaigns to reduce the infant mortality rate in the State,� the Governor said.
Swami Suviranandaji Maharaj, Assistant General Secretary, Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math, during his speech said that Swami Vivekananda always spoke for the socio-economic development of women.
�Nations cannot progress if women don�t,� Suviranandaji Maharaj said. Citing the examples of film star, Kangana Ranaut and Arunima Sinha, the first woman amputee who scaled Mount Everest, he said these two women have said they get inspirations from Vivekananda�s teachings.
As part of the celebration, about 200 newly admitted students had their invocation at the Vivekananda Cultural Centre.
