Senior diplomat and Special Advisor to the Prime Minister, Dr. Deepak Vohra said India has become an unstoppable force for change in the world with a gross domestic product (GDP) of 3.5 trillion dollars.
Speaking at a motivational session for students at the Siksha O Anusandhan deemed to be university on Thursday, he said “India today is the most preferred destination for investment and it’s for the young generation to seize the moment to write their future and determine their destiny.”
According to Vohra, who advises the Prime Minister on 2 African countries and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, said the nation has traversed a long distance from the days when it encountered brain drain, agricultural collapse and dwindling foreign exchange reserve to become the second largest producer of food today, while its capacity to build, innovate and use technology has been globally acknowledged.
“What we need is faith and confidence to go forward. Cynicism does not empower, it paralyses,” he told the packed auditorium.
He said the nation was currently on a high witnessing its craziest infrastructure binge as airports, ports, roads, railway lines and hotels were under construction.
“Eighty airports are being built in the country while one kilometer of highway is being added every 15 minutes,” he said while quoting French poet Victor Hugo who said “nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come.”
Swami Vivekananda, Dr. Vohra recalled, had said 125 years ago that future India would be greater than ancient India which was getting awakened.
Deloitte had conducted an attitudinal study of the millennial generation (born between 1981 and 1996), which found that the Indians were the most optimistic, said Vohra adding that the Goldman Sachs Group, the leading global financial institution, has described India’s story as the world’s most compelling.
He said, “Fifteen per cent of the world’s population which ruled the rest 85 per cent for 200 years is now facing disruption, depression and loneliness while India was bubbling with self-confidence and new energy.”
India’s priority, he said, today was healthcare, climate stability, recovery and development through open seas and new technology.
The lecture was jointly organised by SOA and the Rotary Club of Bhubaneswar Flamingo to mark Swami Vivekananda’s birth day. SOA’s Pro-Chancellor Prof. (Dr.) Amit Banerjee, Vice-
Chancellor Prof. Bijay Kumar Sahoo, Dean (Students’ Welfare) Prof. Jyoti Ranjan Das, Director, University Outreach Program, Prof. Nachieketa K. Sharma and President of Bhubaneswar Rotary Club Flamingo Dr. Smita Sinha were present.
Debabrata Kar, Secretary of Bhubaneswar Rotary Club Flamingo, introduced the speaker while Deba Prasad Dash, Director, Corporate Communication, gave the vote of thanks.