Pointing to cultural identities such as caste and religion being hindrances to achieving national unity, Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways and Civil Aviation V.K. Singh has held that overcoming caste and communal barriers will strengthen internal security in the country.
Addressing students of Sharnbasva University at the Doddappa Appa Auditorium in Kalaburagi on Wednesday, Mr. Singh, a retired Army General, said that division in the name of caste and religion is one of the major threats to internal security.
“Internal security is important for the economic growth of the country. There is an urgent need for imbibing a sense of responsibility in every citizen to come forward to protect internal security of the country. India gave the concept of democracy to the world. Unfortunately, after Independence, the concept of democracy is being viewed just as one’s right and not as one’s responsibility,” Mr. Singh said.
Pointing to the tradition of peaceful cohabitation of different cultures on Indian soil for centuries, Mr. Singh said that mutual respect between different religions and castes should be the basis for eliminating religious and caste barriers and unification of India for protecting the country from the evil designs of the enemy forces.
“Indian Army has always been successful in its missions because there is no caste or religious barrier among soldiers. Treating all in the ranks and file of the army without considering caste and religion or any other cultural identities and allowing everybody to practice his own religious faith is the key factor in uniting the armed forces under a single identity of Indians. This practice needs to be expanded into civil society,” Mr. Singh said.
Terming India as a country making rapid progress in the world with an average growth rate of 6%, Mr. Singh attributed the success to the faith that India has been able to cultivate among investors.
“The confidence of global investors in India is very high because of the peaceful and conducive atmosphere prevailing in the country. We are getting record investments in all the sectors which no other country is getting,” he said.
Minister for Large and Medium Industries Murugesh Nirani, legislators Shashil Namoshi and B.G. Patil, Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board chairman Dattatreya Patil Revoor, Sharnbasva University Vice-Chancellor Niranjan Nisty, secretary of the Sharanabasaveshwar Vidya Vardak Sangha Basavaraj Deshmukh and other dignitaries were present.
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