“In every convocation ceremony that I am called for, I ensure that the university would make at least fifty children from a nearby slum and underprivileged dwellings its guests. The sight of youngsters graduating in black robes and a graduation cap would spark the minds of these guest children and inspire them to rise and shine.”
These were the words of the Prime Minister during a town hall meeting with IT professionals on the launch of “Self4Society”. The compassion in these words must have captivated every listener. Upon listening to this address, one realises that the Prime Minister believes in the strength of small gestures creating deep impacts and who want to run the engine of the nation with the fuel of “Jan Bhagidari”.
The honesty with which the PM answered the questions during his interaction is appreciable. In a candid conversation, he said that “Sarkaar can’t do things which Sanskriti can” and it is our “Sanskriti” which drives the social change. For many, the responsibility as a citizen ends with paying taxes. But as the PM mentioned, It is only when we take a leap forward ourselves and go beyond rules, that the inner joy and satisfaction is achieved. The Prime Minister speaks to passionately about service to others that it is bound to leave an indelible mark on a youngsters thought process. The fact that social service is a two-way learning process, where not only the beneficiary gets impacted but we too get empowered in the process.
The sight of young technology professionals leaving behind the comforts of their plush offices and venturing into the social sector is just one manifestation of sweeping social reforms taking place in our nation. It was inspiring for the young minds to know that the highest leadership of the country acknowledges the innovations being carried out by individuals as well as the social startups for the vulnerable section of the society.
Making a confession and giving a moment of celebration to the committed youth, the PM mentioned that the government follows in the footsteps of these visionary social entrepreneurs and wants their individual efforts to collude to work in a hand-in-glove manner to bring a change. Feats like Swachh Bharat or financial inclusion from the remotest corners of the country speaks volume about our changing India. Reforms reaching the poorest of the poor and those standing at the end of the queue reflects on the impact of the technologically driven vision of the leadership of the country.
The Prime Minister has always connected with the youth of the country far more than the self-proclaimed “youth icons” like Rahul Gandhi who is widely considered as a reluctant politician who is “in the business” only because of his last name.
PM Modi knows the power of technology in empowering the citizens and wants the youngsters to leverage it for nation building in every possible aspect. One fine example is the historic JAM Trinity which has resulted in mass financial inclusion, and has given birth to a new facet i.e, “Garibo Ki Amiri” because of whopping savings of Rs. 80,000 crores in the Jan Dhan bank accounts. Digital India is the genie in the bottle who fulfilled this wish of financial inclusion and made JAM Trinity a reality for India. This genie made mobile phones and internet connection a household name. This only genie made Direct Benefit Transfer scheme a success, which uplifted the most vulnerable in the most unreachable locations of the country. This is the genie which gave the policies of e-Hospital, e-Vidyalaya, and e-NAM a lease of life.
The Prime Minister doesn’t mince words when he speaks of social change driven by mass movement, technology and innovation.
As a youth who aspires to be a cog in the nation-building, those two hours of the Prime Minister’s speech have strengthened my belief that India is all set to unfurl the flag of the prosperity whose echo will resonate throughout the globe. I firmly believe that “Information Technology by Indian Talent will make the India Tomorrow” sooner than soon.
(This article has been authored by Anchal Chaudhary)
