Why was November 11th designated as National Education Day

National Education Day 2021: November 11 is designated as National Education Day to mark the birth anniversary of India's first Education Minister, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.

Education has always been the key to realising goals and enhancing the quality of life for millions of people in a developing economy like India. Education is important to a new nation's effective growth and development, and India has a significant advantage in this field. The country's working-age population is predicted to expand from roughly 64% to 69% over the next few decades, potentially making India the largest single positive contributor to the global workforce.

India celebrates November 11 as National Education Day to commemorate the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the first Education Minister of the country. On National Education Day, India celebrates Maulana Azad's efforts to nation-building. Maulana Azad, a freedom warrior, scholar, and educator, was a fundamental builder of Independent India. 

ABOUT:

Abul Kalam Azad, full name Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin, also known as Maulana Abul Kalam Azad or Maulana Azad, (born November 11, 1888, Mecca [now in Saudi Arabia]—died February 22, 1958, New Delhi, India), Islamic theologian who led the Indian independence movement against British rule in the first half of the twentieth century. Throughout his life, he was held in great regard as a man of moral integrity.

Azad was the son of a Mecca-based Indian Muslim scholar and his Arabic wife. When he was young, his family returned to India, where he obtained a conventional Islamic education at home from his father and other Islamic experts rather than at a madrasah. However, he was impressed by Indian educator Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan's emphasis on receiving a well-rounded education, and he acquired English without his father's knowledge.

Azad began his career in journalism while he was in his late teens, and in 1912 he launched Al-Hilal, a weekly Urdu-language newspaper in Calcutta. For its anti-British stance, particularly its condemnation of Indian Muslims who were loyal to the British, the daily immediately became extremely prominent in the Muslim community. British authorities quickly banned Al-Hilal, as well as a second weekly journal he had founded. By 1916, he had been exiled to Ranchi, where he lived until the beginning of 1920.He was especially engaged in the short-lived Khilafat movement (1920–24), which defended the Ottoman sultan as caliph and even temporarily attracted the support of Mohandas K. Gandhi.

Between 1920 and 1945, he was imprisoned multiple times, including for his role in the anti-British Quit India campaign during World War II. Azad was president of the Congress Party in 1923 and again in 1940–46, however the party was virtually dormant for much of his second term due to the imprisonment of nearly all of its leadership.

He was in charge of establishing prestigious educational institutions such as the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the University Grants Commission (UGC). Maulana Abul Kalam Azad founded the first Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Kharagpur.

In addition to IIT Kharagpur, UGC, and AICTE, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was responsible for the establishment of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Sahitya Academy, Lalit Kala Academy, Sangeet Natak Academy, and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). He was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 1992.

In September of 2008, the Central Government declared November 11th to be National Education Day. On November 11, 2008, then-President Pratibha Patil inaugurated the first National Education Day celebrations at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.