New Delhi: President of India Ram Nath Kovind has said that it is important to cultivate curiosity in our classrooms, and free science from the tyranny of jargon.
Without a strong, dynamic and creative education and schooling system, we cannot create a research and innovation culture, the President has emphasised.
The President made this observation at the concluding session of a one-day Nobel Laureates’ Seminar on the theme “Science impacts lives” , hosted by Rashtrapati Bhawan and organised by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, in association with the Nobel Foundation as part of the Nobel Prize series. This is part of the Nobel Prize Series, a regular and landmark engagement between the Indian scientific and policy community and the Nobel Foundation.
The President said that good researchers emerge in a system that values good teachers and good faculty. The linkage between research institutes and universities – and research and industry – is extremely important. These cannot exist in independent silos. It is also critical to link science to society. One of the reasons for the wide-spread support for our space programme, for instance, has been the ability of India’s space scientists to offer solutions to the lives of ordinary Indians – whether in mapping weather patterns that assist our farmers, or telemedicine that enhances access to healthcare.
Earlier, inaugurating the seminar, the President said that keeping pace with the investment in science, we have also invested in people through our institutions of higher education. We have recently created several central universities; Indian Institutes of Technology; All India Institutes of Medical Sciences; and Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research. These investments will create a huge pool of scientists, clinician researchers and technologists for a changing India. For these investments to bear fruit, these institutions and also our schools must be as good as the best in the world. This is a challenge but together we can accomplish it. Together we can make innovation not just a passion for our scientific elite, but the lifeline of our schooling system.
The President said that because the world is constantly changing and ideas flow from every side, our scientists must be connected to the latest advances in research and technology. Science is nothing if not a global enterprise. It is this that is our focus today. How do we build world class institutions and universities and how do these connect to our society – both within our national boundaries and beyond?
The Nobel Laureates who addressed the Seminar are Christiane Nusslein-Volhard, Sir Richard John Roberts, Serge Haroche and Dr Tomas Robert Lindahl.
Christiane Nusslein-Volhard is a German biologist renowned for her embryonic development of fruit flies. Her contribution earned her the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Richard John Roberts is an English biochemist and molecular biologist who was felicitated with the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of the mechanism of gene-splicing.
Serge Haroche is a French physicist who was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize for Physics for devising methods to study the quantum mechanical behaviour of individual photons.
Tomas Robert Lindahl is a Swedish-born British scientist specialising in cancer research. In 2015, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
New Delhi: President of India Ram Nath Kovind today said that India will complete 75 years of Independence in the year 2022 and it is our national resolve to attain certain desired milestones for a New India by then.
The President also reminded the nation about the illustrious leaders and the diverse generation that brought freedom to the country. They were men and women who represented all parts of the country and a variety of political and social thought.
The President was addressing the Nation on the eve of India’s 71st Independence Day. From the earliest days of our freedom struggle, we were blessed with a galaxy of revolutionary leaders who guided our country, he said underscoring Mahatma Gandhi’s emphasis on the moral character of India and of the Indian society. Gandhiji spoke of not just political freedom but also principles that are relevant even today.
They spoke of not just political freedom. Mahatma Gandhi emphasised the moral character of India and of Indian society. The principles that Gandhiji spoke about are relevant even today.
The President said:
“Gandhiji was not alone in this nationwide struggle for freedom and reform. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose exhorted our people, saying: “Give me blood and I will give you freedom”. At his word, millions of Indians joined the freedom movement under his leadership and gave their all.
Nehruji emphasised that India’s age-old heritage and traditions – so dear to us – could co-exist with technology and a quest to modernise our society.
Sardar Patel instilled in us the importance of national unity and integrity. And of a disciplined national character.
Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar urged upon us the virtues of constitutional governance, of the rule of law – and of the vital need for education.
The government is implementing GST to eliminate multiple taxes and simplify transactions – but it is for each of us to make this an essential part of our everyday transactions and business culture. I am happy that the transition to the GST system has been smooth.
Demonetisation has boosted our efforts to build an honest society. We must sustain this spirit and this momentum.”
India’s voice counts in today’s world. The entire planet is drawn to Indian culture and soft power. The global community looks to us for solutions to international problems – whether terrorism, money laundering or climate change. In a globalised world, our responsibilities are also global.
President Pranab Mukherjee, the President-elect Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President, M. Hamid Ansari, Speaker, Lok Sabha, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan and Chief Justice of India Justice J.S. Khehar in a ceremonial procession at Parliament House for swearing-in ceremony of the President of India, in New Delhi on July 25, 2017.
New Delhi: President of India Ram Nath Kovind, in his speech on assuming office as President of India, today said that the land of Lord Buddha should lead the world in its search for peace, tranquility and ecological balance.
The President recalled how he grew up in a small village in a mud house. His journey is not his alone, Kovind said adding his is the story of the whole country and its society. For all its problems, it follows that basic mantra given to us in the Preamble to the Constitution – of ensuring Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, he aid adding he would always continue to follow this basic mantra.
The President said that India’s voice counts in today’s world. The entire planet is drawn to Indian culture and soft power. The global community looks towards India for solutions to international problems – whether terrorism, money laundering or climate change. In a globalised world, our responsibilities are also global, he emphasised.
President Ram Nath Kovind’s address on his assumption of office as President of India
Respected Shri Pranab Mukherjee ji, Respected Shri Pranab Mukherjee ji,
Shri Hamid Ansari ji,
Shri Narendra Modi ji,
Shrimati Sumitra Mahajan ji,
Shri Justice J. S. Khehar ji,
Excellencies,
Hon’ble Members of Parliament,
Ladies and Gentlemen, and
Fellow Citizens
I thank you for electing me to the responsibility of the President of India, and I enter this office with all humility. Coming here to Central Hall has brought back so many memories. I have been a Member of Parliament and here, in this very Central Hall, have had discussions with many of you. Often we agreed, sometimes we disagreed. But we learnt to respect each other. And that is the beauty of democracy.
I grew up in a mud house, in a small village. My journey has been a long one, and yet this journey is hardly mine alone. It is so telling of our nation and our society also. For all its problems, it follows that basic mantra given to us in the Preamble to the Constitution – of ensuring Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity and I will always continue to follow this basic mantra.
I bow to the 125 crore citizens of this great nation and promise to stay true to the trust they have bestowed on me. I am conscious I am following in the footsteps of stalwarts such as Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, and my immediate predecessor, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, whom we address out of affection as ‘Pranab Da’.
Our Independence was the result of efforts by thousands of patriotic freedom fighters led by Mahatma Gandhi. Later, Sardar Patel integrated our nation. Principal architect of our Constitution Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar instilled in us the value of human dignity and of the republican ethic.
These leaders did not believe that simply political freedom was enough. For them, it was crucial to also achieve economic and social freedom for millions of our people.
We would be completing 70 years of our Independence soon. We are also well into the second decade of the 21st century, a century that so many of us intuitively believe will be an Indian century, guided and shaped by India and its accomplishments. We need to build an India that is an economic leader as well as a moral exemplar. For us, those two touchstones can never be separate. They are and must forever be linked.
The key to India’s success is its diversity. Our diversity is the core that makes us so unique. In this land we find a mix of states and regions, religions, languages, cultures, lifestyles and much more. We are so different and yet so similar and united.
The India of the 21st century will be one that is in conformity with our ancient values as well as compliant with the Fourth Industrial Revolution. There is no dichotomy there, no question of choice. We must combine tradition and technology, the wisdom of an age-old Bharat and the science of a contemporary India.
As the gram panchayat must determine our consultative and community based problem solving, the Digital Republic must help us leapfrog developmental milestones. These are the twin pillars of our national endeavour.
Nations are not built by governments alone. The government can at best be a facilitator, and a trigger for society’s innate entrepreneurial and creative instincts. Nation building requires national pride:
— We take pride in the soil and water of India;
— We take pride in the diversity, religious harmony and inclusive ethos of India;
— We take pride in the culture, heritage and spirituality of India;
— We take pride in our fellow citizens;
— We take pride in our work; and
— We take pride in the little things we do every day.
Each citizen of India is a nation builder. Each one of us is a custodian of India’s well-being and of the legacy that we will pass on to coming generations.
— The armed forces that protect our borders and keep us safe are nation builders.
— Those police and paramilitary forces that fight terrorism and crime are nation builders.
— That farmer toiling in the blazing sun to feed fellow citizens is a nation builder. And we must never forget that so much of our farm labour comprises women.
— That scientist concentrating tirelessly and 24 x 7 to send an Indian space mission to Mars, or invent a vaccine, is a nation builder.
— That nurse or doctor helping the sick to recover and fighting disease in a remote village, is a nation builder.
— That young person who founds a start-up and becomes a job creator is a nation builder. The start-up could be on a small farm, converting mangoes to pickles. Or in an artisans’ village, weaving carpets. Or at a laboratory lit up by giant screens.
— That tribal and ordinary citizen striving to preserve our ecology, our forests, our wildlife, to push back climate change and to advance the cause of renewable energy, is a nation builder.
— That committed and driven public servant who works beyond the call of duty, whether on a flooded road, directing traffic; or in a quiet room, poring over detailed files, is a nation builder.
— That self-less teacher who equips young children and shapes their destinies, is a nation builder.
— Those countless women who take care of families with so many other responsibilities, at home and work, and raise children to become ideal citizens, are nation builders.
People elect their representatives from the Gram Panchayat to Parliament. They vest their will and hopes in these representatives. In turn, the people’s representatives devote their lives to the service of nation.
But, our endeavours are not for ourselves alone. Down the ages, India has believed in the philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (वसुधैव कुटुंबकम) – the World is My Family. It is appropriate that the land of Lord Buddha should lead the world in its search for peace, tranquility and ecological balance.
India’s voice counts in today’s world. The entire planet is drawn to Indian culture and soft power. The global community looks to us for solutions to international problems – whether terrorism, money laundering or climate change. In a globalised world, our responsibilities are also global.
This links us to our global family, our friends and partners abroad, and our diaspora, that contributes in so many ways across the world. It brings us to the support of other nations, whether by extending the umbrella of the International Solar Alliance or being first responders following natural disasters.
We have achieved a lot as a nation, but the effort to do more, to do better and to do faster should be relentless. This is especially so as we approach the 75th Year of our independence in 2022. What must also bother us is our ability to enhance access and opportunity for the last person and the last girl-child from an under-privileged family if I may put it so, in the last house in the last village. This must include a quick and affordable justice delivery system in all judicial forums.
The citizens of this country are the real source of strength to me. I am confident that they will continue to give me the energy to serve the nation.
We need to sculpt a robust, high growth economy, an educated, ethical and shared community, and an egalitarian society, as envisioned by Mahatma Gandhi and Deen Dayal Upadhyay ji. These are integral to our sense of humanism. This is the India of our dreams, an India that will provide equality of opportunities. This will be the India of the 21st century.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Ram Nath Kovind on being elected the President of India.
“Congratulations to Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji on being elected the President of India! Best wishes for a fruitful & inspiring tenure. Gladdened by the extensive support for Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji among MPs & across various states. I thank members of the Electoral College.
I also congratulate Meira Kumar Ji for her campaign, which was in spirit of the democratic ethos & values we all are proud of ”, the Prime Minister said.
Ruling NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind will be the 14th President of India.