The inaugural ceremony of the West Bengal Edition of 'Speak for India', a debating initiative by the Federal Bank, in association with Anandabazar Patrika and The Telegraph took place on Friday, at Bhairab Ganguly College in Belgharia of North 24 Parganas.
The event witnessed the presence of former Member of Parliament, Prof Saugata Bose, who is also the Gardiner Professor of History at Harvard University as Chief Guest along with Mir Afsar Ali, storyteller and Radio Jockey.
Other distinguished guests present at the event included Mr Sabu R S, Vice President and Zonal Head (Kolkata Zone) of Federal Bank, Prof (Dr) Subhranil Som, The Principal of Bhairab Ganguly College and Mr Edwin AG, Deputy Vice President and Regional Head (Kolkata Region) of Federal bank.
"This is the biggest debating competition in the country as of now. Last year we got two lakh registrations for this debate competition. For the West Bengal edition, we had over 300 colleges participating last year with over eighty-two thousand registrations," said Mr Sabu.
"India has the highest youth population in the world. They are the ones who will be driving the country 25 years from now. Such events will empower them to take up new challenges in this fast-paced scenario," he added.
Speaking on the occasion, Prof Sugoto Bose emphasised the importance of different views on a single issue and mentioned that one should have respect for opinions different from theirs.
"During our debating days in college, we would often speak for the motion even if we believed that we really ought to be speaking against the motion. This was important to recognise that there could be two sides, i.e., two legitimate views over a single issue and we needed to learn to respect the other point of view even if we are arguing against it," he said.
Mir, on the other hand, called upon the young generation to speak for others before speaking for themselves and speak about one's feelings for a certain cause, rather than speaking in reaction to what other people are saying.
"You need to speak for others more than speaking for yourself. Only then, you will truly be able to Speak for India. It's important to understand what you feel for a certain cause which should not be in reaction to what someone is saying. It should come as your contribution to the betterment of the society," he said.
The 'Speak for India' debate competition will have four distinct levels. The district level of the competition will encompass all the 23 districts of the state. In the next level, there will be four zones which will compete among themselves. This will be followed by the semi-finals and the finals.
