Anti-western approach damaging for country, says Congress leader Karan Singh

Neemrana (Raj), Nov 16 (PTI) An anti-Western perspective was damaging for India and it should adopt a "binocular vision" taking the best practices followed in the West, senior Congress leader Karan Singh has said.

"Anti-Western approach is not extremely wrong but is definitely damaging for the country. We can take from the West what is useful, but opposing everything that is from the West is wrong," he said while delivering the sixth annual lecture at NIIT University here.

"We need a binocular vision which with one eye keeps an Indian or Asian perspective, the other eye has a world perspective," he said. The 83-year-old politician, who is also the Chancellor of the university, said that 'consciousness research' will be the new buzz in the research world.

"Articulation of consciousness, what is mind body relationship what are the psycho-spiritual linkages, this whole area of consciousness research has become growingly important in America too and other parts of the world.

Science and religion are finally going to come together and they can be studied as quantified," he asserted. Established in 2009, NIIT University, offers BTech programmes in Computer Science engineering, Biotechnology, mechanical, electronic and communication areas.

The M. Tech programmes include those in Educational Technology and Geographic Information Systems. The varsity also offers some dual degree and doctoral programmes. While around 1200 students are enrolled in the various courses, the university also has signed an MoU with the University of Missouri in United States for offering five-year programme.

The annual day lecture is organised by the university on its foundation day on November 15. Singh also became a spiritual guide for the students in the lecture titled 'The messages of Gita' and decoded the messages delivered by Krishna to Arjun in the holy text and explained their relevance to them in the present context.