The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu today appealed to the people to elect their representatives and the governments on the basis of their performance.
During an online interaction with the members of YPO-Greater India Chapter in Visakhapatnam today, the Vice President expressed concern over the increasing influence of cast, criminality, community and cash in politics and asked them to give preference to calibre, conduct, capacity and character while electing their representatives. Calling politics ‘a mission to serve the people’, he expressed concern over the increasing tendency to resort to populism instead of long term constructive policies.
The Vice President also expressed his concern over the declining standards of the debates in the Parliament and state legislatures. “Level of discourse is going down everywhere”, Shri Naidu said and added that in the past debates used to be dignified and peppered with wit and humour. In this regard, he urged legislators to discuss, debate and decide and not disrupt the proceedings. He also advised politicians to consider their opponents as rivals and not the enemies. As the Chairman of Rajya Sabha, he is trying to enforce discipline through persuasion and guidance.
Noting that the constructive contribution by the members in the Parliament was not getting the attention it deserved in the media, the Vice President urged the media to give more attention to the positive work being done by the Parliament. Observing that the credibility of media was declining, he said that ‘newspaper’ has become ‘views-paper’.
On the farmers’ issue, the Vice President said that all doubts can be solved through constructive dialogue.
Narrating his own life journey as an example, the Vice President said that despite coming from an agricultural family with no political background, he could rise to the second-highest constitutional post in the country only because of his discipline, hard work, dedication and conviction.
Shri Naidu said that he has learned a lot from other people’s lives. “I studied the people by spending time with them”, he said and added that this learning helped him to grow in life.
The Vice President advised the young industry leaders to work hard, have conviction and learn from others’ experiences to excel in life.
Reminding the young CEOs about the ancient Indian values like ‘share and care’, Shri Naidu underlined the importance of giving back to society. He remembered Shri Nanaji Deshmukh with gratitude and said that his life inspired him to start Swarna Bharat Trust to serve the society.
Describing his friends as his strength, the Vice President said that he has always remained in touch with his friends going back to school days.
Calling the young entrepreneurs as the future of the country, Shri Naidu said there is no lack of talent in India. However, we have to identify the talent and upgrade their skills. Referring to great Indians such as Aryabhatta, Charaka, Sushruta, the Vice President said that there is something special in this land. “Even now we see that top posts in many reputed MNCs are held by Indians”, he added.
Calling the businessmen as the wealth creators of the nation, the Vice President called for adoption of ethical corporate governance by the Indian industry. Observing that some people have brought a bad name to the business community through their actions, Shri Naidu emphasised that the need to maintain ethics and standards.
Rejecting the notion that one can succeed in life only by studying in English medium, the Vice President cited several examples of eminent personalities like Dr. Abdul Kalam who had their schooling in their mother tongues. Emphasising the importance of mother tongue in one’s life, Shri Naidu said that English is necessary and one must learn as many languages as possible, however, we should never forget our mother tongue.
