The External Affairs Minister interacts with IIMB students and faculty on Atmanirbhar Bharat
10 June, 2022, Bengaluru: “There is, today, a very different India in the making. The scale of beneficiaries of schemes taken up in the last eight years to connect people to the banking system, electricity, housing, potable water, replacing firewood in kitchen with LPG, public health, etc., will make you understand that India is in the middle of a revolution with lives changing dramatically, and this ‘revolution’ is happening democratically. So, the India you step into as you start off with your careers will be fundamentally different form the country how it was when you started your studies,” said External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar, while addressing the students of IIM Bangalore on Atmanirbhar Bharat, this morning.
The External Affairs Minister highlighted that the country was going through a socio-economic change in its bid to create a social security net, which will raise the bottom line of India. “So, India will be different in terms of its skills, demand, entrepreneurial and business acumen, and this change is linked to the implementation of Atmanirbhar Bharat.”
“Self-reliant, not protectionist”
Describing the concept of Atmanirbhar Bharat, he said it means a better enabled India – better fed, more healthy and more self-reliant and self-confident. “What it is NOT is a protectionist India. It is: make with, and make for, the world. India is not trying to get more strength by building walls, but by engaging with the global community.”
“The underpinning to Atmanirbhar Bharat is its people-centric policies, as the most important resource of a country is its people. So, raising the quality of human resources is one of the goals which will be a game changer. If we have come up short in achieving few of these goals in the past compared to other countries, it is not due to our practice of democracy. Moreover, the process of correction has now begun. Earlier, if the last mile delivery was lacking due to a problem in the transmission system, there is now an enormous governance change. And, that has been made possible due to the application of digital technology, which is significantly responsible for the scale of success of our schemes.”
When technology drives change
Pointing out to a sense of pride linked to a sense of India, he said, “The belief that this new India is destined for a greater place in the world, is happening due to the effective realization of sustainable goals. Our schemes are aligned to such goals. And realizing these goals will change the socio-economic landscape of the country and uplift our human resources.”
He listed some of the tools to attain these goals like physical infrastructure, urbanization, smart cities, digital policies, innovation push, etc. “All these are needed to create energies and using these energies through technology which in turn results in delivery.”
He said although primary education in the country has developed significantly, the number of premium higher education institutions had to increase, along with raising tertiary education and building vocational skills.
He said that the COVID experience was revealing and instructive. The making of vaccines, achieving 2 billion shots, the CoWIN platform - the organized digital platform which saw India through its entire vaccination process, he explained, are all “brilliant” examples of a more self-reliant India. “If we apply the same mindset to our perennial challenges, we can come up with sustainable solutions for them. The COVID experience taught us that in times of stress, not being Atmanirbhar can become a national security vulnerability issue. India, like large parts of the world post COVID, is moving to a ‘just-in-case’ scenario and building capacity to be self-reliant. India is working to enhance its domestic supply chain networks. Atmanirbhar Bharat is an economic outlook – it is national self-confidence. We need to utilize and leverage our connect with the world to build our indigenous capacities. We need to facilitate ease of doing business, and be a manufacturing economy, along with being a service economy,” he said.
Dr. Jaishankar’s address to the audience was followed by a Question & Answer session, moderated by Prof. Sourav Mukherji, Dean of Alumni Relations & Development and faculty in the OB&HRM area, during which the minister took questions on a range of issues, from India’s foreign policy, his take on the Russia-Ukraine situation, the border tensions with China, the growing power of Regional Pacts and his own career path, from a diplomat to a politician. He spent a few moments dwelling on his stint with Tata Sons and spoke of his “immense learnings” from working with the conglomerate.
Dr. Jaishankar took a campus tour after his interaction with students, spending time at NSRCEL – the centre for innovation and entrepreneurial learning at IIM Bangalore.
Earlier in the day, Prof. Rishikesha T Krishnan, Director, IIM Bangalore, while delivering the welcome address, took the audience through Dr. S Jaishankar’s career as a Member of Parliament, as Foreign Secretary, as Ambassador and High Commissioner, and as President – Global Corporate Affairs at Tata Sons Private Limited. “Dr. Jaishankar is a recipient of the Padma Shri award and has written a widely acclaimed best-selling book: ‘The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World’, which was published in 2020”.
Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty, Chairperson, Board of Governors, IIM Bangalore, said: “I used to think that our top national priority was healthcare, now I think it is national defence and security. The impact of defence research will be crucial for our country. And the equipment to build that security has to be built in our country. India is blessed with the best institutes of higher education; the start-up ecosystem here is thriving. So, our future generation is well poised to make the dream of Atmanirbhar Bharat a reality.”
Deans Chetan Subramanian (Faculty) and Rajendra K Bandi (Administration), and several faculty members were present at the interaction, along with students from IIMB’s degree-granting programmes. Col (Retd.) SD Aravendran, Chief Administrative Officer, IIMB, delivered the vote of thanks.
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