CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 18, Reuter: Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi said on ‘Sunday that massive illiteracy was not a hindrance in a democracy and in fact could be an advantage.
In response to a question at Harvard University, Gandhi said: “J don’t think illiteracy and democracy or illiteracy and the capability to choose are related. Wisdom is much more important. Common sense is much more important.
“Literacy sometimes narrows the vision. It does not broaden the ion”, he told the audience of some 500 students and professors.
His remarks followed a speech he gave at Harvard on Democracy in India, before travelling to New York on Monday to address the United Nations.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 23, 1987
