P.J. Kurien, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, second from left, releasing a souvenir at the golden jubilee celebration of Bishop Heber College in Tiruchi on Friday. Rt. Rev. G. Paul Vasanthakumar, Bishop, second from right, is receiving the first copy. | Photo Credit: B_VELANKANNI RAJ more-in Colleges play a great role in not only imparting quality education but also in moulding responsible citizens, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, P. J. Kurien, said here on Friday. Speaking at the golden jubilee of Bishop Heber College, he said Christian missionaries established schools and colleges with a view to not only imparting quality education but also for producing responsible citizens. The college was ranked fourth in the National Institutional Ranking Framework of the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development. Kurien termed as ‘misconception’ the view that Christian missionaries had an agenda of converting non-Christians into Christians. Paying rich tributes to the late Bishop of Tiruchi, Thanjavur Dioscese, Most Rev. Solomon Duraisamy, he pointed out that the Christian missionary had played an important role in reviving the college. The college closed down in 1934 and was merged with Madras Christian College. And it was Bishop Solomon Duraisamy, who reopened the college in 1966 with a long-term vision of making India stronger. Great leaders like Rabindranath Tagore and Swamy Vivekananda wanted to make the country stronger only through education, he said. Rt. Rev. G. Paul Vasanthakumar, Bishop and Chairman of College General Body, said the objective of the institution, which had 9,000 students on its rolls, was to provide not only quality education but also impart values to the youth. The management allotted ? 40 lakh every year towards scholarship to students hailing from economically weaker background. Minister for Tourism, Vellamandi N. Natarajan, Minister for Backward Classes and Minorities Welfare, S. Valarmathi, MPs P. Kumar and Vijila Sathyanath, former chief secretary of Karnataka, J. Alexander, and Principal D. Paul Dhayabaran were among those who spoke. Earlier, Mr. Kurien declared open the golden jubilee building and released a souvenir.

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