Students wearing tricolor chant Vande Mataram at the 18th Tirupati Book Festival at Pandit Nehru High School campus in Tirupati on Saturday. | Photo credit: KV POORNACHANDRA KUMAR
To mark the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram, 150 students sang the national song at the 18th Tirupati Book Festival 2026 with patriotic fervor.
Director of IISER Tirupati Santanu Bhattacharya said the habit of reading books will continue to thrive despite the advent of artificial intelligence (AI). “Critical thinking can never become the task of AI because the human intellect will always reign supreme,” said Mr. Bhattacharya.
Similarly, Kolkata-based Netaji Research Bureau Executive Director Sumantra Bose, who is also Professor of International and Comparative Politics at Krea University, Sri City, recalled the way Vande Mataram infused patriotism in Indian minds and hearts during the freedom struggle.
Mr. Bose, the great nephew of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, recalled that his entire family dedicated their lives to the freedom struggle. He also explained how the song got the approval of leading political figures like Netaji and Rabindranath Tagore.
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (Mumbai) Executive Secretary Jagdish Lakhani and Tirupati Kendra Director N. Satyanarayana Raju recalled the vision of Bhavan founder KM Munshi in maintaining the habit of reading books by publishing good publications.
Bhavan’s Guntur unit secretary P. Ramachandra Raju and Bhimavaram DV unit member Lakshmipati Raju also attended.
Published – 07 Feb 2026 20:51 IST