Governor of Telangana Smt. Tamilisai Soundararajan Ji, My Cabinet colleague Shri G. Kishan Reddy Ji, Ministers of the Government of Telangana, Chairman of the Executive Board, Dean, other professors and teachers of the Indian School of Business, parents and my dear young friends.

Today the Indian School of Business has crossed an important milestone in its glorious journey. We all are celebrating the completion of 20 years of the establishment of ISB. Today many friends have got their degrees and have received gold medals. Countless people have contributed to bring ISB to this stage of success. Remembering all of them today, I congratulate all of you - the professors of ISB, the faculty, all the students, parents, and alumni of ISB.

Friends,

In the year 2001, Atal ji dedicated it to the country. Since then, about 50 thousand executives have completed their training from here so far. Today ISB is one of the top business schools in Asia. Professionals who pass out from ISB are giving an impetus to the business of the country. They are handling the management of major companies. The students of ISB have built various startups and have been instrumental in the creation of several unicorns. This is not only an achievement for ISB but also a matter of great pride for the entire country.

Friends,

I am told that this is the first joint graduation ceremony of Hyderabad and Mohali campuses. It is also special for the students who are passing out today because at this time the country is celebrating 75 years of its independence, i.e. the Amrit Mahotsav. We are looking at the achievements of the last 75 years and are also chalking out a roadmap for the resolutions of the coming 25 years. During this ''Azadi Ka AmritKaal', you all have a crucial role to play in the fulfillment of the resolutions we have taken for the coming 25 years. And today the hope in India, the confidence that people have, the will to build a new India, is opening the doors of many possibilities for you too.

Today India is the fastest growing economy among the G20 countries. India ranks number one in terms of Smartphone data consumers. India ranks number two in the world in terms of the number of Internet users. India also ranks second in the world in the Global Retail Index. The world's third largest startup ecosystem is in India. The world's third largest consumer market is in India. I can enumerate many such things before you.

All of us and the world have seen the potential of India during the pandemic like Corona. In this biggest disaster of the century, there was such a huge disruption in the global supply chains. Moreover, the war further aggravated this crisis. Despite all this, India is emerging as a major centre of growth today. Last year, India received the highest ever FDI, which is a record. Today the world is realizing that 'India means business'. And this has been possible not only because of the efforts of the government alone. Business schools like ISB, professionals graduating from this institution and the youth of the country also have a huge contribution in it. Be it the startups, the traditional business, manufacturing or service sectors or our youth; they are proving that they can lead the world. Am I right? Do you believe in yourself or not? I have complete trust in you. Do you?

Friends,

That is why today the world is looking at India, its youth, and the Indian products with a new respect and a new trust.

Friends,

The scale at which India does various things in a democratic way, the way in which we can implement any policy or decision here, become a subject of research for the whole world. And that's why we often see Indian solutions being globally implemented. So today, on this important day, I would ask you to combine your personal goals with the goals of the country. Whatever you learn, whatever you experience, whatever initiatives you take, you should always think about how the interest of the country will be served.

Today, whether it is a campaign for Ease of Doing Business, abolishing more than 1500 Archaic laws and doing away with thousands of compliances, creating a transparent system like GST by repealing the many tax laws or promoting entrepreneurs and innovation; be it a new start up policy, a drone policy, opening up of many new sectors or implementing a National Education Policy that meets the requirements of the 21st century; all these big reforms are taking place only for the youth like you. Our government is always with the youth power of the country to implement the solutions given by youth like you and to make your idea the strength of the country.

Friends,

You must have heard that sometimes I repeat the same thing over and over again and often I say 'Reform, Perform, Transform'. This mantra defines the governance that exists in the country today. The things that I am sharing are very important for management students and professionals like you. I am telling you all these things because you are going to take several policy decisions after leaving this institution. If the policy is good only on the drawing board, on papers, but does not produce any results on the ground, then it is of no use. Therefore, the assessment of the policy should be on the basis of implementation and end results. I would like the youngsters like you to know how the mantra of Reform, Perform, Transform has redefined the policies and governance of the country.

Friends,

If you compare the last 8 years with the 3 decades before that, then you will definitely note one thing. The need for reforms was always felt in our country but there was always a lack of political willpower. Due to the continuous political instability in the last three decades, the country saw a lack of political willpower for a long time. Because of this, the country stayed away from reforms and from taking major decisions. Since 2014, our country is witnessing the political willpower and reforms are being made continuously. We have shown that if the reform process is carried forward with sincerity and determination, then the public support automatically increases. The example of Fintech is before us. In a country where banking was once considered a privilege, Fintech is changing the lives of ordinary citizens of the country. Once a lot of effort was required to build trust in banks but today 40 percent of the world's digital transactions are now taking place in India.

It was believed that our health sector would not be able to respond to any major challenge. But we have seen the result of the country's willpower to reform the health sector during the biggest pandemic of 100 years. During the starting phase of the Corona pandemic, we had very few manufacturers manufacturing PPE kits. We did not even have the necessary infrastructure required to deal with Corona. But soon a network of more than 1100 PPE manufacturers was ready in India. Initially, there were a few dozen labs for conducting corona tests. In a very short time, more than 2500 test labs were set up in the country. Concerns were being raised regarding access to corona vaccines here; whether we would be able to get the foreign vaccine or not. But soon we started manufacturing our own vaccines. So many vaccines were made in India that more than 190 crore doses had been administered. India has also supplied vaccines to more than 100 countries of the world. Similarly, we have brought several reforms in medical education too. As a result, the number of medical colleges has increased from 380 to more than 600 in the last 8 years. Graduate and post graduate seats for Medical students have been increased from 90 thousand to more than 1.5 lakh in the country.

Friends,

Another major change has occurred due to the willpower of the country during the last eight years. Now the bureaucracy is also engaged in taking the reforms on the ground with full force. The system is the same, but the results are very satisfactory now. And the biggest inspiration in these eight years has been public participation. The people of the country are themselves moving ahead and accelerating the reforms. And we have seen this in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. And now we are witnessing the power of public participation in 'Vocal for Local' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' too. When the public cooperates, the results are assured and are quick. That is, in the government system, the government reforms, the bureaucracy performs and the transformation takes place with the cooperation of the public.

Friends,

This is a very crucial case study for you. The dynamics of 'Reform, Perform, Transform' is the subject of research for you. A big institution like ISB should study, analyze and take it to the world. The young fellows who are graduating should also try to implement this mantra of Reform, Perform, Transform in every field.

Friends,

I would also like to draw your attention towards the transformation in the sports ecosystem of the country. After all, what is the reason that after 2014 we are witnessing unprecedented performance in every field of the sports? The foremost reason is the confidence of our athletes. Confidence comes when there is a search for the right talent; when there is hand-holding of talent; when there is a transparent selection process; when there is a better infrastructure for training and competition. We can see and experience the transformation within the field of sports today due to many such reforms like Khelo India and Olympic Podium scheme.

Friends,

In the field of management, people talk about performance, value addition, productivity and motivation. If you want to see the best example of the same in public policy, then you must study the Aspirational Districts programme. There were more than 100 such districts in our country that were far behind in terms of development. There were some ‘Aspirational districts’ in almost every state of the country that used to score very low in every parameter related to development. This had a direct negative impact on the overall performance and rating of the country. Thinking that nothing was happening, change was not visible and the situation was bad, the governments used to declare these districts as 'backward'. This was the mindset that no change would ever come into these districts. In the government system, the officers who were considered the least productive or useless were often posted in these districts.

But friends,

We changed the approach. The districts that were called 'backward' are now called 'Aspirational' districts. We decided that we would awaken the aspiration of development in these districts and instil a new urge. Efficient, young officers of the country were identified and sent to these districts. Every work being done in these districts was closely monitored. Arrangements have been made for real time monitoring on the desk board. Wherever the shortcomings were noticed, efforts were made to rectify those shortcomings. And friends, you will be glad to know that today the situation is such that many of these districts are performing better than other districts of the country that are considered better. Those districts that were once called backward districts, which used to affect the development parameters of the country, are now accelerating the development of the country by becoming an aspirational district. Now we have asked the states to extend this approach further. In every district there are blocks that are lagging behind in terms of development. The aspirational blocks campaign is now being taken forward by identifying such blocks. The knowledge and information about these changes taking place in the country will help you a lot in policy decisions and management.

Friends,

It is also important for you to know all this because today not only the meaning of 'business' is changing in the country but the scope of 'business' is also expanding. Today the economic landscape in India is spreading to small, medium, cottage and even informal enterprises. These businesses are generating employment opportunities for lakhs of people. They have a lot of potential and are committed to move forward. Therefore, today when the country is writing a new chapter of economic development, we must remember one more thing. We have to take equal care of small traders and small businesses as well. We have to give them bigger platforms and better opportunities to grow. We have to help them connect with new markets in home and abroad. We need to connect them with technology more and more. And it is in this context, the role of institutions like ISB and the students of ISB becomes very vital. As a future business leader, all of you have to come forward, take responsibilities to make every business grow and expand. And you will see, if you help small businesses grow, you will help build lakhs of entrepreneurs and will help crores of families. To make India future-ready, we have to ensure that India becomes self-reliant. And the business professionals like you have a crucial role in it. And in a way, this will be an important example of service to the nation for you.

Friends,

Your passion to do something for the country will take the country to new heights. I have a lot of confidence in ISB, the students of ISB and all the youngsters like you. You leave this prestigious institution with a purpose. You connect your goals with the resolutions of the nation. If you do something with the commitment of 'doing for the nation, empowering the nation', certainly success will be yours. Once again, my best wishes to all the young friends who have received medals and have been successful, and also their family members. ISB should continue to prepare such generations in the development journey of India. I hope such generations continue to work with dedication for the nation. With this expectation, thank you very much to all of you!

DISCLAIMER: This is the approximate translation of PM’s speech. Original speech was delivered in Hindi.

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DS/VJ/IG/AK