Develop Gorakhpur as city of knowledge: President

Addressing the founder's week celebration of Maharana Pratap Shiksha Parishad, Kovind said Gorakhpur, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's political home turf, should be developed as a knowledge city by 2032 — the centenary year of the Parishad, which works in the field of education and capacity building.

He said Uttar Pradesh has the largest number of youths in the country and the new policies of the state government should help them become "job creators".

The president said the objective of education is to develop a good human being, but stressed that quality of education is as important for a country's development.

Recalling the great men from the region — such as Paramhans of the Nath sect, Sufi saint Roshan Ali Shah, Baba Raghav Das, Munshi Premchand, Ram Prasad Bismil and Firaq Gorakhpoori, the president asked students to follow the path of Maharana Pratap, a Rajput warrior from the Mewar region of Rajasthan.

He also praised the contribution of saints from the Nath sect in the field of education and contribution towards society and during the freedom struggle.

He said he has visited the Gorakhnath temple several times when Mahant Avaidyanath, the mentor of Adityanath, was its head.