India, June 7 -- The Government of India issued the following news release:
This is indeed a very important convergence of builders and businessmen from Bengaluru. Bengaluru in the country is one of the top three in terms of demographic situation, economic progress Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru. At the outset, I would like to express my sense of condolence for the unfortunate event, condolence to the family of the bereaved, and I wish the injured a speedy recovery.
Distinguished audience, the nation suffered a major agony at Pahalgam. There was brutality, barbarity, and there was killing that was targeted. Might of Bharat was challenged, our civilisation was strained but this is an occasion for us to salute our armed forces. They struck decisively, they struck to the entire global acclaim. The Operation Sindoor attained its object with precision, calibrated and targeted destruction.
Muridke and Bahawalpur bear testimony to the might of our armed forces. The world does not require any proof. For the simple reason, the coffins were taken to Kabristan, accompanied by military officials of that country. Politicians of that country and terrorists.
Bharat, home to one-sixth of humanity, has sent a categorical message to the entire world. Bharat will no longer tolerate terrorism and that is why the potency of our Brahmos, manufactured in Bharat, was demonstrated by the intended devastation at Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba headquarters. I have no words to express my gratitude along with all of you for the valour of our armed forces but on this occasion, being amongst people, I seek to share my thoughts.
Be it economy or national security, you people have to play a great role. The role is critical because days of conventional war are gone. War has to be fought on technological prowess. When it comes to defining India's technological power, technological prowess, we have to remember Bengaluru. Its talent, its contribution, Bengaluru has become the envy of the world. It is a place where our young minds have done wonders.
Institutions and corporates of global eminence have emanated from this place. I would therefore urge that this crucible of innovation that has catalysed big changes in the past has a greater challenge now because we are living in a different era now. Disruptive technologies, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Machine Learning, Blockchain and the kind are the new norm. These are challenges that can be converted into opportunities. Otherwise these challenges will not be wholesome for our economy.
Therefore optimal efforts have to be made to ensure our resources, human resources, are generalised to bring about big change in technology harnessing. And that is a challenge to the corporates, business, trade and industry that we must engage in research of the highest order. It is our research capacity that will define how powerful Bharat will be in the world. Our technological penetration, our technological innovation will define how secure we are.
Peace is fundamental to growth of business, harmony for the people. Peace is never bargained, peace comes from a position of strength. It comes from a position of power. Greatest peace is secured when we are ever prepared for war. There was a time when industry did not have much role to play beyond manufacturing armoury, lethal arsenals but now industry has to contribute totally in a different groove and that groove is technology. And in this groove we have to lead the world by research because research alone is its final strength in long term. If we take pride in sending a global message by getting deep into international border, it was nothing but technology.
It was Brahmos made in Uttar Pradesh. It was Akash that gave us a cover but all these are created by technology and therefore I am at the right place because Bengaluru is a place where talent thrives, where talent blossoms, where industry takes wind and winks to the knowledge of the entire global community. Therefore the most daunting challenge, the solution lies in Bengaluru.
Last ten years, distinguished audience, India has seen extraordinary development. Exponential economic upsurge, phenomenal infrastructure growth, deep digital technology penetration up to the village. We have been the fastest growing economy in the world amongst large economies during this period. We have traversed from position 11 to get into single digit, to get a slot number 5, to get a slot number 4. And now we are aiming very shortly to be the third largest global economy in the world. But to politicians we have senior amongst us, and to industry I wish to pose a question to you.
Bharat is no longer a country with potential. Bharat is on the rise as never before. The rise is incremental, the rise is unstoppable but we have to do more and I'll tell you why. Viksit Bharat is no longer our dream. It is our object. For sure we'll attain that object. But to achieve that object, we will have to take quantum leap and the quantum leap has to be taken by increasing manifold per capita income. Size of the economy is fine, but we have to see our economy rise status by juxtapositioning our demographic size, we are 1.4 billion people. Therefore, on empirical estimate, there will have to be 8-fold increase in the per capita income.
Now in this growth engine, the people before me, with whom I'm sharing my thoughts, are the most vital stakeholders. The engine of growth can fire on all cylinders, given your contribution but one thing is, people in industry, unlike people in politics, people in industry are satisfied by balance sheets. People in politics are not. They keep on contributing to rise higher and therefore, emergence of green field projects in the country is not at the pace at which it should be taking. I appeal to you, please think.
Converge in clusters to have green field projects, to increase capacity of the same project is fine but if you have green field project, there will be equitable distribution of employment, opportunities, and growth potential. The second aspect is, I come from a farming community. The farm sector plays a critical role in the growth trajectory of the nation. But at the moment, the contribution of the farm sector is limited to producing agro products and marketing it. They are not part of the marketing mechanism. The farm sector is not part of marketing chain. Industry is primarily based on agro-produce. Now industry will have to brainstorm, scratch their brains, to bring about greater synergy between the farm and the industry.
The farmer will have to be handheld. There will have to be entrepreneurs from farm sector. I call them agripreneurs but they cannot be there on their own. Food processing is one fundamental factor. Number of industries. Value additions can take place. The technology will determine that if there is production in abundance, the farmer obviously loses. Because the prices go down. These are driven by the market. How do we sustain the price? We sustain by adding value to the abundant production at the farmland or close by.
The spectacle of tomatoes being put on the road is not good for our national mindset. We must evolve a mechanism where if there is abundance, there can be mobile industrial units to convert into raw material and send it to the concerned industrial sector. So time has come for the corporates to share their profits with the farm sector.
Remember, your investment, be it in research or in farmland, will be an investment for your gain. It will make up for emergence of sustainable economy. I also urge corporates, business, trade and commerce that we need to subscribe to a concept of economic nationalism. When I was a member of Parliament and a Minister, and that was about three and a half decades ago, our precious gold had to be air-shipped to Switzerland to be placed to two banks because our foreign exchange reserve was around one billion US dollars.
Now it is more than 700 billion US dollars but just imagine if we stopped importing items that are made in this country, it would not be 700 billion US dollars. It will be more than 800 billion US dollars. Because we import from kites, candles, diyas, furniture, curtains, garments and we do three things immediately that are detrimental to our economy. One, we snatch work from our own people. Two, we blunt entrepreneurship and three, we create a hole in our foreign exchange.
Now how to do it? There are two ways. One, people can do it but there is an easier way because imports are by corporates, trade, industry and business. You need to decide. This is not for the government to decide because we have a global regulatory regime. But people can decide. Mahatma Gandhi is remembered for giving a cutting edge to our freedom movement because he called upon people to believe in Swadeshi. Our present Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has given it a new dimension 'Be vocal for local.'
I beseech you, please converge all associations. Take a view on it. The nation will be ever grateful. And when we import from countries that in times of crisis turn out to be inimical to our interests, they threaten our security collaterally. Why should we not show patriotism! I therefore come to another aspect. Political parties in the country will have to bring down the political temperature. The dialogue between political parties cannot be of confrontation. The dialogue has to be soothing. Democracy is defined, friends, by dialogue and discourse.
(Omitted Hindi content can be viewed at https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2134922)
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
