Sadhguru during a conversation with Kiran Bedi, looks at why India should ensure that youth are skilled properly. Youth without purpose can be a dangerous possibility he says, and stresses the importance of skill training and education beyond just compulsory schooling.

Full Transcript:

Questioner: Sadhguru Namaskaram.

Kiran Bedi: Identify.

Questioner: Yeah I am Sandeep Kalra…

Sadhguru: There is a…there is a police woman, you must identify yourself (Laughter).

Time 127:05

Questioner: So my question is with something which I had experienced. We have a small NGO. We started that to enable people so that they can live well. So we employed some boys who were the sons of these maids and drivers. We told them that “You come, we will teach you how to work on CNC machines.” Those boys, they came from two days and third day they didn’t turn up. We asked them “Why you are not coming up” they say “Humare haath kaale ho jaate hain” “My hands become black, I don’t want to work with my hands.” This is what is happening that after education, all parents, even including myself, I want my child not to do a handwork. He should be an officer, he should sit in the office or he should be in the AC. Now this is something where the erosion has happened. I would like your insight on this.

Sadhguru: I think I kind of addressed this in the beginning. Our idea of education is entire English unfortunately. Everybody is going to the university. For what? We have to live in this universe, not in a university, okay? (Applause) See right now, this is a serious thing happening in the country. I do not know if these laws are across the nation but at least in Tamil Nadu – because there were children dropping out of school, the government passed a law a few years ago saying that “You cannot fail a child till he reaches 9th standard.” So from 1st standard to 9th standard it is free pass. This was done – misplaced compassion. Because if you fail him at 3rd standard, then he will go back home, he won’t come back and sit in the same class again. So let him somehow continue. Good intention. But today you have millions of youth who are fourteen-fifteen years of age, who wear pants, who have the attitude of the educated but they don’t know education. They can’t add 2 + 2. But they have the attitude of the educated. Now they can’t go back to the farm and work with their father. They can’t learn carpentry if their father is a carpenter or a blacksmith or whatever your CNC machine.

Now we are creating this youth. This is a dangerous thing. Youth without purpose is a dangerous possibility, always. So our idea of education has to change. Why is it that everybody has to go to school? I do not believe in this compulsory education thing at all. Why is it that everybody has to go to school? We have to make a law. By the time you are eighteen, everybody must be tested, you must have some skill, otherwise you must join the army or do something. (Applause) Some skill, you must be able to do something with your hands or your brains. If you have no skill, you must go for two years of some kind of compulsory training. It could be you know semi armed forces, it could be police, it could be some other industrial training, whatever. Kept there for two years and trained. In every country… In many countries who want to come up well, they have two years of compulsory army training. Ours need not be necessary military training. It could be industrial training, it could be something else. But compulsorily they must go through. By eighteen if they don’t have a skill, or they are not progressing towards their academic capabilities, they must compulsorily go. If you don’t skill the nation, you will kill the nation. (Applause)