STATE TIMES NEWS
Hubballi (KTK): Asserting that “Yuva Shakti” is the driving force of India’s journey, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the next 25 years are important for building the nation.
Repeatedly invoking Swami Vivekananda, he said there is a great optimism in the world towards India and its youth.
“Yuva shakti is the driving force of India’s journey, the next 25 years are important for building the nation. Yuva Shakti’s dreams decide India’s direction. Yuva Shakti’s aspirations decide India’s destination. Yuva Shakti’s passion decides India’s path,” Modi said.
He further said that to harness the Yuva Shakti we need to be young with our thoughts and efforts.
“To be young is to be dynamic in our efforts, to be panoramic in perspective, to be pragmatic. If the world looks to us for solutions it is because of the dedication of our Amrit generation (the youth),” he added.
The Prime Minister earlier inaugurated the National Youth Festival here on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.
The 26th edition of the festival, which will be held till January 16 at Hubballi-Dharwad, is being organised by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in collaboration with the Government of Karnataka.
Pointing out that India is the fifth largest economy in the world and the goal is to take it to the top three, Modi said this economic growth of the country will bring in a lot of opportunities for our youth.
“This is special time in history, you are a special generation, you have a special mission, this is the mission of making an impact for India on the global scene,” he said in his address to the youth.
For every mission a foundation is needed, whether it is for economy or education, sports or startups, skill development or digitalisation, he noted. “In every domain, a strong foundation has been laid in the last 8-9 years. The runway is ready for your takeoff.”
The inaugural event held at the Railway Sports Ground here was attended by Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi and Anurag Singh Thakur among others.
Highlighting that there is great optimism in the world today towards India and its youth, Modi said, “this optimism is about you, because of you and for you.”
Noting that there are global voices saying that this century belongs to India, he said, “It is your century, century of India’s youth. There are global surveys saying majority of the big investors want to invest in India, these investors want to invest in you. India’s youth.”
From toys to tourism, defence to digital, India is making headlines across the world, the PM said, adding that this is a historic time when optimism and opportunity are coming together.
Touching upon ‘Naari Shakti’, he said, women are today flying fighter jets, and are getting inducted in combative roles in the Army. “Whether it is Science, technology, space and sports our daughters are reaching heights.”
“We have to make 21st century, India’s century, for it we have to think 10 steps ahead from the present. Our approach should be futuristic. To fulfill the aspirations of the youth, you have to do positive disruption and move ahead of modernised countries of the world.”
Possibly before the end of this decade our world is going to change, emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Internet of Things would have evolved much, and data science and cyber security would have become part of our life much deeper, he said. “So our youth should be prepared with future skills.”
Observing that initiatives like digital payments, Swachh Bharat, Jan Dhan, indigenous COVID vaccines were made fun of, Modi highlighting their success today told the youth, “So if youth have new idea, you may be subjected to fun, but if you have trust on your idea, stick to it.”