Text of the Vice President’s address at the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Meghalaya Skill and Innovation Hub in Mawdiangdiang (Excerpts)
Text of the Vice President’s address at the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Meghalaya Skill and Innovation Hub in Mawdiangdiang (Excerpts)
Very good afternoon to all of you.
After landing in Meghalaya my spirits are high. I am having a heavenly feeling, you all are blessed to be living here.
Let me assure you all, the Honourable Governor pointed out, the demographic composition of the state is very soothing wholesome and is a perfect recipe for success, the teenage youth, the mid-level youth, the mature youth.
What I saw here and much of it is already in progress, I can visualise that the days of this state are for the better and role model for other similar states. My congratulations to you and your team for being very thoughtful, futuristic and taking into consideration our contemporaneous needs and requirements.
It was a delightful moment for the entire country when we had Madam Droupadi Murmu as our President, the first tribal woman to occupy such a high office. I must share my joy that we have amongst us a bureaucrat, Idashisha Nongrang, the first woman DGP of Meghalaya and the first tribal lady from Meghalaya to be DGP. These twin credentials define changing profile of India’s growth trajectory. As Chairman, Rajya Sabha I was in the chair when reservation was made for one-third women to be in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures.
Distinguished bureaucrats and most importantly, boys and girls at the outset let me extend an invitation to two categories. I will request the Honourable Chief Minister that in batches I would invite students to be my guests at new building of Parliament.
This is an ongoing exercise and I get energised, enthused, motivated, and inspired when I interact with them in Rajya Sabha Secretariat. I can assure you, you will have a lifetime experience to see the new building of Parliament. In the face of COVID, the building came into being in less than 30 months with old infrastructure. Depicting our civilisational depth of 5,000 years and I am sure the batches will start coming from November. I will recruit an officer to coordinate with the Office of the Chief Secretary to make things smooth.
I also take the opportunity and that I have done with some other states in the Northeast to invite their legislators to be my guests and I am sure here also, the Honourable Chief Minister, Leader of the House, and keeping in mind that his father was a very illustrious speaker of the Lok Sabha, he himself has been in that theatre so has been the Honourable Governor. A visit by legislators to the Indian Parliament will make all the difference. It will add value to their work pattern.
The subject of skilling is indeed of contemporary relevance and in that context it was my delightful moment to be associated with two significant programmes and presence for the third one. Laying the foundation stone for the Meghalaya Skill and Innovation Hub is not a small step. It will bring about big change. I am sure it will come into being functionally quite soon, unfolding of the infrastructure reveals that its size is going to be gigantic and will attract attention beyond the state but human resource involvement would also give a cutting edge.
I would particularly request the Honourable Minister for Skilling Government of India, Shri Jayant Chaudhary to have deliberations with the Honourable Chief Minister and the team. He is a dynamic minister with independent charge and has already revealed his mind by two very important articles. So, the kind of passion I saw in the Chief Minister, the mission mode in which he reflected, the execution for which he is known, I am sure this is going to be a real boon to the youth because these are the times where skilling is no longer a quality, it is our need, it is our daily need.
It was equally delightful to launch CM Business Catalyst: Student B-Plan challenge. That was amazing. I was a student of physics not of chemistry but I learned over the years that a catalyst is something very important. You have to catalyse the change, you have to bring about the change you believe in. Someone has to take that step and that step was taken by visionary Prime Minister Narendra Modi ten years back. No one is more informed than I am about the situation of the country in 1989 when I was a member of parliament and a minister.
How shaky weaver on economy, how fragile was our foreign exchange balance and what was mood of the nation. Prime Minister, thoughtfully by visionary steps has uplifted the mood of the nation to one of hope and possibility. An ecosystem is in place now where every young boy and girl can look for a larger basket of opportunities. Must beyond, just getting into government service. The innovation which is our obvious forte, and skilling for which we have to be a global source centre. Now the programme has taken a structured method but even without it, our health workers have contributed so massively outside the country. Particularly our girls, they have earned laurels for the entire country.
When I went to the Middle East and when I got accolades and what has come in several countries of the Middle East that infrastructure they stand out in the world for that, the underline backdrop of human resource is Indian genius, Indian skilled human resource.
When Prime Minister Modi could get the entire world on the same page, with the United Nations declaring in the shortest time with the largest support of nations ‘International Yoga Day.’ The Prime Minister made a statement that we will have yoga instructors in every part of the globe. Yoga has become a science, yoga has become an industry, yoga has been associated with fitness and yoga has been associated with our civilisation depth. Because the greatest knowledge platform for health the Honourable Minister is aware of it, our Vedas ‘Atharvaveda’ you will find it.
Boys and girls, this day indeed is a unique day and this makes my maiden visit to the state of Meghalaya very very special. It shall ever be etched in my memory. Honourable Chief Minister has been very kind, he has already extended invitation for a second visit. I remember when as president of the bar, I invited one of the persons, “Are you free for dinner today?” I was president of the bar and the great lawyer, who is no more, Ram Jethmalani, he said, “Think for a second time, Mr. Dhankhar.” I was young. I had the good fortune to be a member of parliament alongside him. He said, “I am in the habit of accepting good invitations for dinner.” But they say in the United States, there is nothing like a free lunch so, I accept the invitation with two caveats. I will entertain at least one group of students boys and girls, and one group of legislators before I visit state of Meghalaya and this should happen in 2024.
Skill development has to be understood. It is not something we are discovering or innovating. We would need a plumber, we would need an electrician, we would need a driver, we would need a carpenter, we will need someone who can deal with our computer. We will need them, they’re already there. Skill means it gets the best out of you, skill is optimal exploitation of the talent of a person in that specified field and that gives the human resource a qualitative cutting edge.
Focus on this aspect by the Prime Minister has been laboured on and has consistently reflected on this and a big change has come.
One, there’s a dedicated ministry.
Two, there is an allocation of 60,000 crores over a period of five years, where five lakh youth will be given such kind of internship.
Now, when we think of it, we have to get it closer to the requirement. Villages and semi-urban towns must be hub of skill centres of a kind, you can have them graded for some, you need a higher level of urbanisation because of human resource requirements. But this will be a great game changer and this skill for the state of Meghalaya can bring about wonders, incremental growth in your trajectory, a big economic upsurge related to tourism, for instance. Nature has bountifully gifted you. So soothing, this whole is air-conditioned by nature. Just imagine, elsewhere we have a tough time.
So tourism by itself is sustaining the economy of several countries. You have to exploit it fully by having very talented skilled people in the shape of human resources. Every tourist carries memorable moments of professionalism, excellence because the rest of the things nature has given you. The engine of your economy can be driven singularly and on all cylinders by tourism. I was happy to note when I was interacting with the Honourable Chief Minister that he has a plan. The plan is in execution but these days, while I advise every young boy and girl to be patient, I want the 15% category to which the Chief Minister belongs to be impatient. To be functional 24×7 because if we shape their future, if we shape their career, if we keep them away from stress and tension, if we keep them away from the fear of failure, we will be contributing hugely to the growth of the nation and therefore, this has to be done.
Skilling by itself is capacity building, I have seen for myself, we don’t take the first step, we fear it, we fear it thinking it is difficult. Let me tell you, there is no step which our youth cannot take. All are equal, You must be guided by your attitude and aptitude. Therein, if you get an idea in your mind, please don’t make your mind a parking place, your mind is meant to be a crucible of innovation. Try it, don’t fear failure because failures are just not there.
There are people who will always say the glass is half empty, don’t listen to them. Listen to those who say the glass is half full. Chandrayaan-2, I witnessed as the governor state of West Bengal, after midnight around 2 AM, Chandrayaan-2 was very close to the lunar surface but did not reach. Some took it as a failure. Chandrayaan-3 has demonstrated the success of Chandrayaan-3 giving Bharat the status of being the only country in the world to have landed its spacecraft at that part of the moon. It was majorly because of Chandrayaan-2.
Skilling is fine, growth of the economy is fine but there has to be another spirit and the spirit of nationalism. North-East is a very important part of the country culturally, ethnically, historically and economically. In the 90s, a great step was taken ‘Look East’ but Prime Minister Modi gave it a cutting edge. He frog-leaped into larger space by indicating ‘Look East act East’ and that act East has resulted in communication getting exponential connectivity being there, interaction taking place, airports number being doubled, and most of it being in the pipeline also. It’s a great place but challenging in several ways also when it comes to infrastructure development.
One thing is for sure North-East is on the radar of the nation’s development. North-East is a significant contributor to India’s unity economic progress, cultural essence and it is because of this policy of the present government that when I attended ASEAN for the first time as Vice President, there was a keen interest in several countries of that region and it was fructifying. When I talked about the impact we are having, I can tell you things are in the right frame but some of us out of ignorance or being ill-informed do not appreciate what a nation is.
A nation is not divisible as to who has how many roads, how many dams, how many airports. We are one whole, this is our identity. It’s an identity that has survived in spite of the nation having been assaulted from outside on a number of occasions in the last several hundred years. Therefore, boys and girls, the mantle is on you. The onus is on you. Be informed.
Thanks to technological advancement, thanks to disruptive technologies, everyone now has a right of expression. An expression which earlier was captive of newspapers, TV channels expression otherwise could not find a way in the public domain. Suddenly we find we can ourselves be the epicentre of expression but can we afford to be loose cannons, ignoring our basic commitment to our nation? Can we allow on public platforms free fall of information that has no factual foundation? Let me come to the state of the nation today. The entire world is in admiration of Bharat, its economy, its prosperity, its innovation, its human resource, its creativity.
They can’t believe that a nation of 1.4 billion people has internet connectivity virtually in every village, electricity in every house. The day is not far when every house will have tap water. These are big things but these big-ticket accomplishments are a ground reality. Therefore, boys and girls, you are much luckier than us. You are really lucky to be living in a land that is known as Bharat. Which other country can rival in our cultural wealth? No other country. Which country can claim to be a repository of knowledge, wisdom as our Bharat?
I therefore beseech our young friends that when we are destined to be a developed nation in 2047, you are the most vital contributors. You are the most significant stakeholders, you are drivers of that engine and I have no doubt this engine will not fail.
Look around, if there is heaven,it is in india. If there is heavenly spirit, it is in Meghalaya. Boys and girls, I am leaving this place with full confidence, with certainty that Bharat that is on the rise at the moment and the rise is unstoppable. This rise no one can impede, I am optimistic because I see your potential. I can read your intent, I know you will exploit all your energy to make this nation great. Make yourself a worthy citizen and make your families and teachers ever proud. I am indeed privileged to be part of this unique program.
Thank you so much.