Aim to become leaders – Annamalai at Kongunadu College
“Around 7.5 lakh students graduate from colleges in Tamil Nadu every year. Job opportunities are not available for all these 7.5 lakh students but if they aim to become leaders, they all have work to do in this society, Hence I request all the students to aim to become leaders,” said Annamalai, Founder & Chief Servant of We The Leaders Foundation at Kongunadu Arts & Science College.
Kongunadu Arts and Science College (KASC) inaugurated its Student Association on Thursday. K. Annamalai, inaugurated the association by presenting badges to the newly appointed office bearers in the presence of C. A. Vasuki, Secretary, Dr.Paramasivan, Treasurer, Dr. Sangeetha, Principal of KASC, the college’s Academic & Administrative Higher officials, Professors and Students.
During her address, C. A. Vasuki remarked that the Student Association serves as a dynamic platform for developing leadership, teamwork, responsibility, communication, and social commitment, and a space where young people can transform ideas into meaningful action. She strongly advised the youth to stay away from drugs, emphasizing that substance abuse harms individual health and hinders societal & national development.
Following her address, the students took a pledge to act as responsible Indian citizens dedicated to promoting a drug-free India, women’s safety, environmental protection, social justice, and national integrity.
K. Annamalai, while delivering the keynote address, emphasized the potential of student leadership by recalling how a student leader named P. E. Srinivasan defeated the legendary Tamil Nadu politician K. Kamaraj, asserting that college administrations have a duty to cultivate a healthy political temperament on campus.
Citing Harvard University’s student newspaper, The Harvard Crimson, which produced U.S. Presidents like Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy as well as 40 Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, he encouraged students to fully leverage college clubs to acquire practical skills.
Addressing educational statistics, he pointed out that out of over 1.20 lakh+ seats (1,26,959) in government arts and science colleges in Tamil Nadu, only 80,000+ seats (83,720) got filled, that is 65.6%, compared to 78% the previous year.
He concluded by noting that while Tamil Nadu produces roughly 2.4 lakh Arts and Science graduates, 2.1 lakh Engineering graduates, and 3 lakh graduates from other streams annually, traditional job markets cannot absorb everyone. However, by acquiring the right mindset and leadership skills, students can forge their own paths by creating jobs, leading companies, or establishing NGOs to drive broader societal advancement.
He cited various startups that sprung from Colleges including IITs and even Coimbatore-based Engineering colleges. He mentioned how No Food Waste from Coimbatore became an award-winning NGO. By stating how colleges can give rise to such transformational organizations, he appealed to the students to “Become leaders,” right from college days.
