Going against his party’s campaign that nothing has been done in 70 years of the Congress rule, Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Giriraj Singh acknowledged the contribution of former Prime Minister late Lal Bahadur Shastri for ushering in the ‘Green Revolution’ that transformed India from food deficit nation to a grain exporter.
Speaking at this ‘Milk Capital’ during the 42nd convocation ceremony of the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA), here on Thursday, Singh attributed India’s great strides in food sufficiency to the joint efforts of Lal Bahadur Shastri and eminent agriculture scientist Dr M S Swaminathan.
He also recalled the role of ‘Milkman to the Nation’ Dr Verghese Kurien, whose ‘White Revolution’ has made India the world’s largest milk producer.
Congratulating the 283 students who were conferred the Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management, Singh said that that they would be the artisans of India’s ‘Amrit Kaal’ as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi whom he described as a tough task master.
He also asked the graduating students to keep in mind that rural India would have a substantial contribution to the five trillion-dollar economy Prime Minister Modi has planned.
Dr R S Sodhi, member of IRMA Board of Governors, said that India’s growth has to take along the rural sector through emphasis on ‘agri value chain’. Guest of Honour Reema Nanavaty, Director of Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), which has a membership of 25 lakh, reminded the graduates that ‘poor do not need charity, they want dignity.’
Economic freedom for rural women would be India’s true independence, Nanavaty told the fresh graduates in rural management.