Speech by
Shri L.K. Advani
Leader of the Opposition (Lok Sabha)
Opening of the College Building of
GM Institute of Technology, Davanagere (Karnataka)
13 February 2008

Shri B.S. Yediyurappa, former chief minister of Karnataka, Shri Ananth Kumar, MP and general secretary of the BJP, Shri G.M. Siddeshwara, MP and chairman of Srishyla Education Trust, teachers and students of GM Institute of Technology, ladies and gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to be with all of you at this wonderful educational institution. The college building that I have been asked to inaugurate is truly a great work of aesthetics. An elegant building and a beautiful campus are as essential for good education as well-qualified teachers. It is, therefore, rightly said that we shape our buildings, and thereafter they shape us. Nowhere is it as true as it is in the case of buildings of educational institutions.

But I would hasten to add that we need better architectural and aesthetic sensitivity in everything we build — indeed, in nation-building as a whole. We should build better and more beautiful cities and towns for today’s young Indians and for the future generations to live in. We are not paying enough attention to this aspect. As in the case of so many other aspects of nation-building, this also is linked to the theme of good governance.

At the outset, I would like to pay homage to the late G. Mallikarjunappa, the founder of this institution and a widely respected political leader from Davanagere. He was my party’s valued colleague in Parliament.

I would also like to express my deep appreciation of all those institution-builders in the field of education in Karnataka. Your state has truly made tremendous strides in professional education, most of this progress being due to non-governmental initiatives. I must especially pay tribute to all those religious establishments in Karnataka that have established a large network of educational institutions of high standards — medical and engineering colleges, management institutes, vocational training centres, colleges in traditional streams and, of course, primary and secondary schools. Other states should emulate Karnataka in this regard.

From Brain Drain to Brain Gain

Friends, whenever I find myself in the midst of young students, I am filled with an overwhelming sense of duty and responsibility. I wonder whether those of us in politics and government are thinking enough, and doing enough, in terms of fulfilling the dreams and aspirations of today’s young generation.

For a long time, there was a disconnect between the ambitions and aspirations of young people on the one hand, and the actual performance of our governments on the other. For a long time, India was not seen as a land of opportunities. Hence, educated youth would dream of going to the West, especially to USA, not only for studies but also to settle there.

Many of you here will recall that there used to be a lot of debate in the earlier decades about the phenomenon called ‘Braid Drain’. It’s good to know that there is now a reversal in the trend and, these days, I hear of a new term called ‘Brain Gain’ — which refers to the phenomenon of educated and successful Indians abroad returning to our country since India itself is providing very many exciting opportunities in business and professions. Many foreigners, including those from the West, are coming to India in search of high-end employment opportunities. For example, these days, with a boom in aviation, I see that many pilots in India are from abroad.

India is now being seen all over the world as the next economic superpower in the making. This, you will agree, is a transformation of great importance. It fills us with patriotic pride.

Making India strong, prosperous and proud

Talking about my own party, and the central government of which I was a part for six years, I have great satisfaction that we contributed significantly to this transformation. We took some ambitious steps to build a stronger and more prosperous India. The world-class network of highways, the telecom and IT revolution, the Sarva Shikshan Abhiyan to universalize elementary education and a host of other initiatives to accelerate economic growth created new opportunities for more and more Indians. They boosted national pride.

For the first time, we institutionalized a mechanism for the large Indian Diaspora to become a partner in the evolution of a New and Resurgent India, with initiatives like the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas and dual-citizenship in several countries.

Among those Indians abroad who have earned fame and fortune for themselves and for India, are thousands of Kannadigas. I am as proud of them as you are.

What also contributed to heightened national pride is the bold and historic step taken by the Vajpayee government to make India a nuclear weapons state.

Terrorism and Maoism can have no place on campuses

Alongside, our government took firm measures to strengthen India’s internal security apparatus, especially by adopting a non-sense approach to combating terrorism. We did so because we believe that our developmental achievements, and also our future plans, will come to a naught if we allow the twin dangers of jehadi terrorism and Maoism to carry on their murderous campaign in India.

In this context, it is worrying to read of late that Karnataka is becoming a hub for terrorist activities. Organizations like SIMI, which have links with extremist outfits abroad, seem to be spreading their tentacles secretly in this state. What is disturbing is that some young students and professionals from Karnataka are getting drawn into this terror net. Just a few days ago, there were reports of some persons arrested in UP and interrogations revealing that they had a hand in the terrorist attack on the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore and were also planning an attack on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

The government of the day, be it in New Delhi or in states, cannot take a soft approach to this menace for short-term political considerations.

I can assure that you that we shall not.

How to realize India’s ‘Demographic Dividend’

Friends, since I am in this beautiful campus today, I wish to present some thoughts on how we can create many more opportunities for many more young Indians. For we cannot be blind to the fact that crores of youth in our country, including in Karnataka, still remain excluded from the progress, prosperity and global profile that India has achieved in recent years.

All of us — in society as well as in the polity — have a responsibility to ensure that our children and young Indians belonging to the rural and urban poor, and especially those belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Tribes, benefit from India’s Rise as much as the students in this institute, who, I am pleased to learn, get attractive employment opportunities, even before they receive their graduation certificates, in prestigious companies like Infosys, TCS, Wipro and MNCs.

Can there truly be India Rising without every Indian Rising? No.

Is it possible to make the dream of every Indian Rising a reality? Yes.

Here, I am told by experts that demography is presenting India with a huge new opportunity in the years and decades to come.

India is, and will remain for a long time to come, one of the youngest nations in the world. Thirty seven percent of our population is in the 15-35 years age group, as against 25 percent in China. Many developed countries in the West are having a declining population. A third of India's population was below 15 years of age in 2001. In 2020, the average Indian will be only 29 years old, compared with 37 in China and the United States, 45 in Western Europe, and 48 in Japan.

Soon India will have the largest "working age population" — those in the age-group 15 to 64 years — in the entire world.

This means that, in the decades ahead, there will be a tremendous demand for all types of work in many countries around the world. And because of globalization and technological enablement, many of these tasks can be carried out by a skilled labour force located in India. Our young Indians can become service providers to the entire world.

Hence, this demographic advantage — some people call it ‘India’s Demographic Dividend’ — can create large unexpected spin-offs in terms of growth and prosperity.

Of course, India’s own rapid and broadbased growth will create many opportunities for Indians in our own country.

Needed: Education Revolution

But for this opportunity to be actualized, India must focus on an urgent national mission to expand and improve education — from primary to university levels. We must not only have thousands of good institutions like this one in all the states of India, but also ensure that their doors are open to students from less privileged backgrounds. Our youth should be trained in new skills and new areas of employment, for which there is demand both in India and abroad.

My dream is to see that we not only have an Infrastructure Revolution in India — roads, electricity, telecoms, ports, airports, irrigation and science & technology for agriculture etc. — but also an Education Revolution in our country.

And visiting institutions like this one strengthens my resolve, and the resolve of my colleagues, some of whom are here, to work for these twin revolutions.

Indeed, I attach greater importance to the Education Revolution than to the Infrastructure Revolution, although the latter cannot be ignored.

Once again, Good Governance is the key to realising the demographic potential or advantage that I have just mentioned.

The first step required is to remove unnecessary bureaucratic controls that governments have on the functioning of good educational institutions. Our universities are not attaining world-class standards because of excessive government control and interference.

Above all, corruption and malpractices in the field of education must be rooted out.

We must trust and encourage non-governmental initiatives like the one I see here — and like the hundreds of successful initiatives that Karnataka today boasts of.

But teachers, college managements and students also have a big responsibility of their own. They all must be driven by a zeal to continually improve the process and environment for learning, as befits an ancient nation like ours which has always placed the highest premium on jnana or knowledge. Jnanam Paramam Dhyeyam, our seers have said.

Young Indians should become active in public affairs

I have another advice to young students and professionals. While you must strive to achieve the best in whatever you are doing, you should also become more socially active. You should enthusiastically participate in public affairs and try to change the way things run in our country. Indeed, many of you should aspire to take up leadership positions in various fields.

I recently, just a few days ago, had an interesting visitor — from your own state. It was Rajendra Kumar Misra from Bangalore, who won a nationwide contest called LEAD INDIA conducted by The Times of India. A graduate from IIT Kanpur and Tokyo University, and one who owned and successfully ran several technology companies, Sarma decided to devote himself to public activism at the age of 40. And he seems to have done some interesting projects in Bangalore and elsewhere.

I congratulated him, just as I congratulate the other participants in that campaign, which succeeded in highlighting the virtue of idealism among young Indians.

It always gives me great pleasure to interact with such young Indians, and I feel even more convinced that India has a great future when more and more young well-educated and idealistic Indians become active in the affairs of the nation.

Let me conclude my remarks by invoking the words of William Shakespeare: "There comes a tide in the affairs of nations which taken at the flood can lead to fortune...”

A tide is coming in the affairs of India, and we must take it at the flood. We must not lose this opportunity.

Once again, sincere thanks for inviting me to your institute. I wish it the best in the years and decades ahead.

Thank you.