Minister for Water Resources N.K. Premachandran called for greater efforts in strengthening the secular fabric of the democracy of India.
He was delivering the Republic Day message after hoisting the national flag and taking salute at the ceremonial parade held at the Police Parade ground here on Wednesday.
Mr. Premachandran warned against the threat posed by the rise of extremism in the nation. “The country has been led strongly by an efficient democratic system even at times when other nations are under the danger of unrest. However, we cannot choose to neglect the perils of extremist acts that could endanger our society. The pillars of democracy – Executive, Legislature and Judiciary – must function transparently and without any cloud of suspicion,” he said.
He also stressed on the importance of a collective effort in order to fuel the growth of the nation “Immediate steps must be adopted to counter price rise and food scarcity. Black money should not be permitted to emerge as a parallel economical power in the country. In addition, the benefits of the economic growth should reach the common man,” he pointed out.
V.N. Vasavan M.L.A., Thomas Chazhikadan M.L.A., Kottayam Municipal Chairman Sunny Kalloor, District panchayat president Radha V. Nair, district collector Mini Antony, district superintendent of police P.G. Ashok Kumar, Pala sub-collector Keshavendra Kumar, Additional District Magistrate (ADM) E.P. Rajan, Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) P.S. Basheer and Oil Palm India Ltd. Chairman V.B.. Binu were present on the occasion.
Contigents of the Police department, the Excise department, Student Police, N.C.C., Scouts and Guides participated in the ceremonial parade.
Awards were distributed by the Minister for march-past displays in various categories at the event.
During another function that was held at the Mahatma Gandhi University, Pro-vice Chancellor Dr. Rajan Varughese led the Republic Day celebrations.
He hoisted the national flag after the ceremonial parade by the security personnel at the main campus.
During his message, Dr. Varughese stressed the importance of utilising the benefits of education in order to fight the evils that are engulfing the nation.
Registrar M.R. Unni, Finance Officer Abraham J. Puthumana, Joint Registrars C. Sobhana and V.T. Jayamma; and Public Relations Officer G. Sreekumar were present on the occasion.
