Beyond literacy

 We are Indians living in this country of 1.5 billion people with an overall 74% literate people, being the most populated country and considered a young country are expected to possess many qualities. India's young population has potential to boost the economy, foster diverse skills, have many skillful brains and many more big goals are there that are expected to conquer by this country but are we really growing that way? today I am a student living in hostel surrounded by many minds that can curve the future of India and many people who can change the future who can create things. Yet, whenever I observe them, I often feel disappointed, as if they are destined for something greater but unaware of it. They say "Experience is the best teacher" which means people may not learn from just listening but they learn everything by experience. Today I saw a girl brushing beside me and i noticed that she kept the tap on when there was no use of water she opened it then applied toothpaste on the brush and kept it on up to the point she finished doing it and the water got wasted, she must be in her masters and just a month ago faced an urban flood when we had no water neither for drinking purpose nor any other use, we were dependent on small water bottles provided by rescue teams that too 1 for 1 girl but after all this education and experience she doesn't know how to use resources. This may be a small thing but I witness many such things here where this should not happen, maybe the reason is that our country may have a higher literacy rate, many universities with many young minds but maybe we are producing just literate people and lacking with educated people. This things starts from childhood we need some add-ins in our education system that can produce more aware youth who are not selfish and know how to use resources wisely, sustainable development is far away, we need sustainable thinking that can align with the goals that we have. Sustainable development isn’t just about policies and initiatives; it starts with sustainable thinking, a mindset that needs to be nurtured from childhood through education.