Speaking at the ThinkEdu Conclave 2026, organised by The New Indian Express, Governor West Bengal Dr C V Ananda Bose, explored the relationship between education, public service, and nation building. He spoke on the theme, “Academics and Public: Service Lessons for Tomorrow.”

Dr CV Ananda Bose began his address stating that he is not an expert in education but just a former civil servant. Highlighting his self-professed lack of authority in the matter, he recalled a humorous incident where he did not know who actor Rajinikanth, Sarod player Amjad Ali Khan, and vocalist KJ Yesudas while being the Culture Secretary of Kerala.

However, he countered this by adding that being the Chancellor of over 50 universities in his capacity as a State Governor gave him some authority.

The Governor quoted Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, and Aristotle to drive home the importance of education, and then recalled Nobel Laureate Romain Rolland, Arnold Toynbee, Mark Twain, and Albert Einstein's praises on India.

To highlight the importance of education as an exercise of nation-building, he also quoted the Kothari Commission Report, which states that the “destiny of India is being shaped in her classrooms.”

“Education is not policy, nor is it these seminars we hold. Education is what remains after one forgets what has been learned in the classroom.” he added, paraphrasing Einstein.

Governor Bose stated that education must lead to candidates finding jobs. He recalled another humorous anecdote about a former classmate, a first-class graduate who had to find employment in the circus due to a lack of jobs. There, he was forced to face a lion for the audiences’ entertainment, and he begged the lion to not kill him as he was a graduate. To his surprise, the “lion” replied that it was a postgraduate.

“We proudly say, ‘Education is empowerment,’ ‘Education is emancipation,’ ‘Education is enlightenment’ — these are true, but education must also lead to employment,” he added.

Speaking on the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020), the Governor said that it replaced the European approach to education with an Indian approach. He added that that they were aiming to achieve the Viksit Bharat 2047 mission, which is possible only through the path of education

Further, Governor Bose emphasised that education must be driven by the vision of social commitment — without which, even “educated public servants” cannot bring development to every citizen.

“Vision and action are equally important. Without vision, actions can be counterproductive,” he said.