President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday said the governors are the link between the Centre and states in the federal system while Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said the governors should not hesitate in seeking information from the state governments.
In her closing remarks at the two-day conference of the governors, Murmu said smooth functioning of all institutions is very important for public welfare and overall development.
According to a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan, she said the discussions took place in the conference with the aim of creating better coordination among various institutions.
The two-day ‘Conference of Governors’ concluded today at Rashtrapati Bhavan. In her closing remarks, the President emphasised on issues such as tribal welfare, women empowerment, natural farming and drug addiction among others. She appreciated the work done by the groups of… pic.twitter.com/Bvxp3fzeFd
— ANI (@ANI) August 3, 2024
“The governors are the link between the Centre and the states in the federal system of India,” the statement said.
President Murmu expressed confidence that cooperative federalism and mutual coordination of the central institutions will be promoted as per the suggestions given by the groups of governors.
She said the governors are responsible for setting an ideal example for the citizens.
“If they set examples in important areas, it will not only become their identity but also guide the people,” she said.
Vice President Dhankhar said the two-day conference had left an indelible imprint on the minds of all participants, who discussed important issues in great detail.
He said the governors should not hesitate in seeking information and maintaining sustained communication with the respective state governments for effective functioning.
In his address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the governors to evolve an ideal model of governance in the Raj Bhavans.
He said there should be a consistent attempt to train the staff for the effective functioning of the Raj Bhavans.
He also urged the governors to embrace technology in their functioning and promote digitisation.
Modi particularly called for tapping the strength of alumni networks of educational institutions and appealed to them to develop a mass campaign to make educational campuses free of drugs.
He also referred to natural farming as suggested by Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat and urged other governors to emulate the model of natural farming in the other Raj Bhavans and make their premises free of chemicals.
The Raj Bhavans should become a source of motivation and inspiration for others, he said.
The second day of the conference began with the six groups of governors making presentations based on their deliberations and suggesting a future roadmap.
After the perusal of all the reports presented by the groups of governors, Union Home Minister Amit Shah praised their efforts and pointed out that all actionable points would be taken up to make the functioning of the governors and the Raj Bhavans more effective.
President Murmu lauded the collective efforts of the governors to have comprehensive discussions in the spirit of mutual learning.
In her closing remarks, she appreciated that various groups of governor came out with their valuable ideas and suggestions to improve the functioning of their office as well as for the welfare of people and expressed confidence that these suggestions would be implemented.
President Murmu said the development of the country depends on the inclusive and accelerated development of the states.
All states must move forward by learning from each other’s best practices and experiences, she said.
President Murmu said in order to ensure that no eligible citizen is left out of public welfare programmes, the government has laid great emphasis on last-mile delivery.
This has improved the lives of common citizens, she said.
She urged the governors to ensure the benefits of all public welfare programmes reach every eligible person so that the goal of inclusive development can be achieved in the true sense.
President Murmu said women’s participation is of utmost importance for meaningful and holistic social inclusion.
Women empowerment can be strengthened by encouraging women self-help groups, she said, adding the path to ‘women-led development’ can be paved by promoting women-led start-ups.
She advised the governors to interact with such active women entrepreneurs and representatives of institutions working for women empowerment from time to time and guide them.
President Murmu said by further promoting the participation of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in the process of development of the country, the governors can contribute in fulfilling the national resolve of inclusive development.
She highlighted the suggestion of a sub-group of governors for the proper utilisation of resources allocated for the welfare of tribal communities and expressed hope that all governors would give priority to this suggestion.
The governors should endeavour to increase the connection of common people with the Raj Bhavans, she said.
President Murmu said people should have a feeling of affinity with the Raj Bhavan as their own Bhavan.
She noted that many Raj Bhavans are open for public visits and others can also follow the practice.
The use of the digital medium in the functioning of the Raj Bhavans will set a good example, she said.
