Mangaluru : India can prosper only if it makes strides in the fields of science and technology on the lines of the U.S., Japan, Korea and China said Eminent scientist C.N.R. Rao.

He was speaking after distributing scholarships to wards of self-help group members under the Sujnana Nidhi scheme of Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP) at Dharmasthala on Tuesday.

Stating that Indians have been lazy and that they love gossip, Mr. Rao said that the government has to promote health, education, science and technology sectors. Hidden talents among children in rural areas need to be recognised and supported, he said and added India’s future is with children in rural areas.

Mr. Rao felt that imparting education in mother tongue would be effective till high school level rather than English. Stating that he was inspired by scientist Sir C.V. Raman when he was 11, Mr. Rao urged students to dream about their future and work hard towards achieving it.

Presiding over the programme, Dharmadhikari D. Veerendra Heggade said that science and religion should be complementary to each other. However, one should not lose sight of humanity with the growth of science and technology, he said.

Scholarships worth Rs 6.5 crore were sanctioned to 10,000 students studying in 2,387 institutions across the State during the current academic year, said SKDRDP Executive Director L.H. Manjunath.

Of them, 4,270 were from engineering, 576 from medical, 4,123 from diploma and 1,031 were from other professional courses. Set up in 2007, the Nidhi is in its decennial year now. While engineering and medical students would get ₹ 1,000 a month, nursing and diploma students would get ₹ 400 scholarship a month under the scheme. As many as 25,210 students have received scholarship worth ₹ 30 crore during the last 10 years.