Highlighting the two pet projects of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, "We have recently embarked upon two important initiatives -- Swachh Bharat Mission -– to achieve a Clean India by Oct. 2, 2019, to coincide with the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhiji, and Make-in-India campaign –- aimed at enhancing the manufacturing capability of our nation."
Pitching for the success of the Swachh Bharat and Make in India initiatives of the NDA government, President Pranab Mukherjee today said that the two missions would help realise Mahatma Gandhi's vision of a 'Swachh and Samarth Bharat'.
"Gandhiji's dream is our dream; his vision must lead us through the challenges of the present towards a clean, green and self-sufficient Bharat," Mukherjee said while inaugurating an international seminar here on 'Clean and Capable India of Gandhi's Dream'.
Noting in this regard the crucial role of society at large and the need for the support of key stakeholders, Mukherjee said that "a concerted effort to refurbish India will help realise Gandhiji's dream of a Swachh and Samarth Bharat".
Highlighting the two pet projects of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, "We have recently embarked upon two important initiatives -- Swachh Bharat Mission -– to achieve a Clean India by Oct. 2, 2019, to coincide with the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhiji, and Make-in-India campaign –- aimed at enhancing the manufacturing capability of our nation."
The Make in India campaign seeks to realise Gandhiji's dream of a self-sufficient and productive India, Mukherjee said, adding that it aims to make India "'Samarth' on all fronts of economic development by facilitating investment, promoting innovation, fostering skill development and establishing best-in-class infrastructure".
As for the Swachh Bharat campaign, the President said that Gandhiji visualised cleanliness as having three dimensions -- "a clean mind, a clean body and clean surroundings".
He said that "a winning strategy to achieve a state of cleanliness would comprise engaging the citizenry, addressing the reduction of waste and improving the processing of waste".
Also at the seminar, Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu while said that the NDA government was inspired by Gandhi's philosophy of inclusive development based on the involvement and empowerment of every individual.
He said that the government was keen to turn the Swachh Bharat Mission into a "Swachhagraha" movement for making the country clean in the next five years.
The people of the country should insist on cleanliness and undertake mass action with a missionary zeal for a "Swachhagraha" inspired by Gandhi's vision, Naidu said at the event organisied by the Rajghat Samadhi Committee, a statutory body under Urban Development Ministry.
Referring to the 'Make in India' programme, President Mukherjee hoped that it would lead to a shift in attitude towards business.
"Overall, the Make in India programme should lead to an attitudinal shift in how India relates to investors -- not as a permit-issuing authority but as a true business partner," he said.
Focusing on the need to step up manufacturing activities, Mukherjee said that "a comprehensive strategy is required to usher in a world-class manufacturing set-up in our country".
"Steps in this direction include a facilitatory governance mechanism; building of smart cities and industrial clusters; development of specialised skills in the youth; and establishment of dedicated freight corridors for improved connectivity," he added.
The President said that select domestic companies having leadership position in innovation and new technology should be identified to turn them into global businesses. Advanced and environmentally-sensitive manufacturing companies should be encouraged to make them an important part of the global value-chain, he said.
Naidu opined that Mahatma's vision of a clean India went beyond a set of physical targets for the construction of toilets.
"The Clean India campaign needs enlightened individual actions to uphold every fellow citizen's right to live in a clean environment," Naidu said.
He observed that the country is yet to realise Gandhi's dream of cleanliness, which the Father of the Nation had envisioned about a 100 years ago.
"For the Mahatma (Gandhi), cleanliness was as important as political freedom," he said.
The two-day seminar is being attended by over 1,000 Gandhians from India and abroad, representatives of Gandhian institutions, scholars and research students.
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