ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA TO THE INSTITUTES OF HIGHER LEARNING AND CIVIL SERVICE ACADEMIES THROUGH VIDEO-CONFERENCING USING THE NATIONAL KNOWLEDGE NETWORK ON THE TOPIC, YOUTH AND NATION-BUILDING Vide Cnferencing Rm, Rashtrapati Bhavan: Jan 19, 2016 Vice Chancellrs f Central Universities; Directrs f IITs, NITs, IISERs and ther institutes f higher learning and civil service academies; Faculty members; My dear students: 1. I wish yu all a very happy and prsperus new year. Let 2016 be a year f achievement and fulfilment fr each ne f yu. 2. India is a natin with a significant yung ppulatin. Over six hundred millin peple in ur cuntry are belw the age f 25 years. The Natinal Yuth Plicy defines yuth as thse persns wh are in the age grup f 15 t 29 years. I am hwever nt subscribing t any technical definitin here. Fr me, yuth is much mre than mere age. I place my faith in thse wh are curius and keen t learn; wh are impatient Page 1 f 7
and adventurus; wh have bundless energy and drive; wh accept the permanence f change and are ever ready t questin the status qu; and wh have the ptential t create and harness disruptive technlgies fr rapid grwth. 3. Investment in educating the yuth, in the sharpening f their mental faculties, technical skills, prfessinal cmpetence, and awareness abut their scial respnsibilities, wuld be the key t prepare them fr natin-building. The way we nurture ur yuth int cnfident, capable and cmmitted citizens will determine ur cuntry s future. I have therefre chsen t speak t yu tday n Yuth and Natin-building, a subject clse t my heart. 4. When we talk f natin-building, the first thing we have t think f is what kind f natin we want t build? A blueprint fr that cannt be sme randm sketch but a grand design based n values, hpes and aspiratins f the peple f the natin. On twenty-sixth January 1950, we laid a strng fundatin by giving urselves the Cnstitutin f India. It was the magna carta f sci-ecnmic transfrmatin fr building an inclusive and mdern India. We prmised urselves t secure t all the citizens f this svereign natin justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. The cre principles f demcracy, secularism, gender equality and sci-ecnmic equity became the beacn fr ur jurney frward. Page 2 f 7
5. Let me pause here t take a lk at the changes that surrund us. Infrmatin and cmmunicatin technlgy has made us think, act and react differently. Distances have shrunk; mbility has increased; instant cmmunicatin has led t greater awareness, and raised expectatins. Cnsumerism is at its peak. Medical sciences have raised the life expectancy and thrugh better healthcare imprved the quality f life. Disruptive technlgies have becme the rule rather than the exceptin, putting strain n adaptive capacity f individuals and systems. 6. It is in this envirnment that the yuth have t shulder the respnsibility f natin-building. They must be readied fr it thrugh the medium f educatin and training. The educatin that we impart t ur yuth must have three clearly-defined gals. First, it must teach them t cntrl their lives, which can be dne thrugh character-building, healthcare, and sharpening the ability t learn and use experience fr attainment f ne s gals. Secnd, it must teach them t understand life thrugh a study f histry, science, religin and philsphy. And the third, it must teach them t enjy their lives thrugh friendships and relatinships, bservance f nature, and study f art and literature. Our educatin system must gear up t develp ur yuth n these lines. Page 3 f 7
We must prvide value-based educatin t ur yuth. We must inculcate in them the spirit f demcratic behaviur which calls fr an appreciatin f the rich diversity f ur natin, assimilatin f ideas, and accmmdatin fr divergent r cntrarian views. The idea f secularism is deeply ingrained in the cnsciusness f ur natin. It has t be further strengthened in the minds f the yung nes t build a harmnius sciety. 7. Gender equality is essential fr building an inclusive sciety. Unless wmen participate n equal terms and in equal numbers in the prcess f natin-building, all effrts will remain incmplete. The ccurrence f sme unfrtunate incidents f atrcity and vilence against wmen in recent years shuld strengthen ur reslve t wipe ut any trace f depravity and evil frm the minds f individuals. Respect fr wmen is sacrsanct in ur sciety with its rts embedded in ur civilizatinal values, which are reflected in ur Cnstitutin. A spirit f reverence twards wmen must be instilled in ur children in ur hmes and educatinal institutins. It must guide scial cnduct f an individual frm an early age. 8. Withut sci-ecnmic equity, the wrd inclusin has n meaning. During the last few years, we have prvided citizens the right t infrmatin, emplyment, educatin and fd, backed by legal guarantees. The Gvernment has launched Page 4 f 7
prgrammes fr financial inclusin, creatin f mdel villages and frmatin f a digitally-empwered sciety. We have strng legislatins and schemes riented twards inclusin. What we have t d nw is t create enugh pprtunities thrugh their implementatin t meet the ambitins f an aspiratinal India. 9. The natin which yu have t build as bureaucrats, techncrats, scientists, educatrs, scial innvatrs, thinkers, and agriculturists has t be an India which will ensure a decent and fulfilling life t all its citizens. It has t be a swachh India, swasth India, a digitally-empwered India, educated and skilled India, and a tlerant, harmnius and peaceful India where the last persn feels a part f the narrative f the cuntry. 10. India needs nvel ideas and creative slutins t vercme challenges in the fields f educatin, skill develpment, sanitatin and healthcare, financial inclusin and service prvisin. A successful innvative idea is ne that has scalability. Hw can we skill ne millin f ur yuth every mnth? Hw can we gainfully emply trained manpwer in the industry? Hw can we prvide healthcare services t each rural husehld? Hw can we meet the financing requirements f small farmers and entrepreneurs in villages Page 5 f 7
and small twns? Hw can we make public utility services mre accessible, inclusive and transparent? 11. The answers t these questins lie in creating a strng digital backbne that can lead t efficient service delivery. Putting a mbile phne in the hands f a persn living in a remte village and teaching him t use it t access infrmatin, knwledge and services is a great act f empwerment. It gives true meaning t the wrd inclusin. 12. Fr building the India f ur dreams, we all have t wrk tgether t develp an ec-system which will bring tgether innvatrs, entrepreneurs and financiers, which will recgnize merit and give primacy t science, technlgy and innvatin. A facilitative and supprtive envirnment fr free play f all creative frces, be it in gvernment, crprate sectr r academia, has t be created. 13. The gvernment has just launched "Start-up India" t prmte start-ups and ffer incentives fr entrepreneurship and jb creatin. The ver 4,500 start-ups make India the third largest start-up ec-system in the wrld. The higher academic institutins have a clear rle t play in refining the entrepreneurial abilities f their students. Teaching f entrepreneurial studies as a curse in ur institutes will be a gd beginning. 14. Educatinal and civil services institutins have t inculcate in their students and trainees a sense f scial respnsibility. Page 6 f 7
Sme suggestins fr enhancing their engagement with the cmmunity are: i. Assign them t teach in nearby gvernment schls fr at least ne hur per mnth. ii. iii. Deply them t undertake cmmunity-based prjects t uplift the cnditin f peple in the vicinity. Assign them t identify prblems faced by villages and wrk n innvative slutins which blend mdern technlgy with lcal practices. My yung friends: 15. Tmrrw belngs t yu. Yur cmmitment t natinal gals will determine the directin f ur future grwth. As yu get ready t embark n the jurney t fulfill yur dreams, let me share with yu my wn little checklist fr natin-building. We wrk twards natin-building if: We prduce mre than we cnsume; We give mre than we take; We wrk mre than we idle; and We think mre than we talk. Yu may just find this list useful. Thank yu. Jai Hind. Page 7 f 7