Rid India of Macaulay mindset in next 10 years: PM Modi

new delhi: prime minister narendra modi on monday urged citizens to take a pledge to free the nation from what he described as the “mindset of slavery” instilled by thomas macaulay, who initiated a campaign nearly 200 years ago to dismantle india's cultural foundations.delivering the sixth ramnath goenka lecture, modi noted that macaulay's actions against india's cultural and educational systems would complete 200 years in 2035.“i want to appeal to the entire country: over the next decade, we must resolve to free ourselves from the mindset of slavery that macaulay imposed on india. the coming 10 years are extremely important,” he said.modi said that when a nation fails to honour itself, it begins to abandon its own ecosystem, including its made in india manufacturing framework. he cited tourism as an example, noting that countries across the world take pride in their historical heritage, while post-independence india often witnessed attempts to disown its own legacy.“without pride in heritage, there is no motivation for its preservation, and without preservation, such heritage is reduced to mere ruins of brick and stone. pride in one's heritage is a prerequisite for the growth of tourism,” he said.on the issue of local languages, modi questioned which other country disrespected its own linguistic traditions. he said nations such as japan, china and south korea adopted several western practices without compromising their native languages. this, he stressed, is why the national education policy (nep) places special emphasis on education in local languages.he clarified that the government is not opposed to english but strongly supports indian languages.modi said macaulay shattered india's self-confidence and instilled a sense of inferiority. “this was the moment when the seeds were sown for the belief that progress and greatness could only be achieved through foreign methods,” he said, adding that this mindset deepened after independence.“india's education, economy and societal aspirations became increasingly aligned with foreign models. pride in indigenous systems diminished, and the swadeshi foundation laid by mahatma gandhi was largely forgotten. governance models began to be sought abroad, and innovation was looked for in foreign lands,” the prime minister said.modi asserted that the societal afflictions introduced by macaulay must be eradicated in the coming decade.