The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today called upon NITI Aayog to create a vision document that would, chart a roadmap for India’s development for the next fifteen years, and also lay the foundation for the country’s growth over the next decades of the 21st century.
Interacting with members of the NITI Aayog, the Prime Minister said the time for incremental change, that was the norm across the world for quite some time, is now over. He said the current age is one that requires transformational change. He highlighted the importance of technology as an emerging driver of change over the last three decades, and asserted that this pace of change would not slacken. The Prime Minister asserted that the Union Government has the courage and the ability to deliver transformational change for bettering the lives of the people.
He pointed out that, historically, Indian policy-makers had tended to lament its constraints rather than play to its strengths. Laying out the broad contours of India’s development path, the Prime Minister said that judicious and intelligent application of India’s natural resources and human resources, would be at the heart of this change. Giving several illustrations of this theme, he mentioned use of available land, the country’s mineral wealth, and vast untapped solar energy potential. In a similar way, he said India has made sub-optimal use so far of its vast coastline.
Talking about human resource development, the Prime Minister said focused skill development is vital, as India has the potential to fulfil the global requirement of human resources in the future. The Prime Minister stressed on the need to develop India’s tourism potential. He said partnership with States for promoting development and boosting exports is not just an element of cooperative federalism, but also the need of the hour.
Turning to Agriculture, the Prime Minister said the focus cannot be on increasing agricultural productivity alone, but should be on the overall development of a vibrant rural economy. He emphasized the importance of the food processing sector, warehouse development, and technology inputs, in this sector.
The Prime Minister said that the intentions (niyat) of the policy-makers are even more important than the policies (niti) themselves. Stressing on the need to build capacities for good governance, he highlighted the importance of real-time data availability.
He urged the NITI Aayog to take inspiration from events such as the success of the Give-it-Up campaign, and the widespread positive response from the people to the Swachhta Abhiyan. This experience disproves the assumption commonly made by experts that people are only interested in benefits for themselves; it shows that people are motivated by the larger public good.
The meeting was attended by the Minister of State for Planning, Shri Rao Inderjit Singh, the Vice Chairman of the NITI Aayog Shri Arvind Panagariya, and Members of the NITI Aayog, besides senior officers from the NITI Aayog, PMO and Cabinet Secretariat.
