16 Aug 2015

The acting High Commissioner of India to Botswana, Mr Chellappan Gurusubramanian says India has registered a growth rate of 7.3 per cent over the last decade after recovering from the economic recession. 

Speaking on the eve of India’s 69^th Independence Day in Gaborone on Saturday August 15, Mr Gurusubramanian, however, cautioned that growth benefits must reach the poorest of the poor before they land in the bank accounts of the richest of the rich.

He said the economy promised much hope for the future and thus called for equitable distribution of the nation’s resources, noting that as an inclusive democracy and inclusive economy, there was a place for everyone in the wealth hierarchy.

Nonetheless, he said the first call should go to those who suffered on the brink of deprivation and that government policies must be geared to meet the ‘zero hunger’ challenge in the foreseeable future.

On other issues, Mr Gurusubramanian said peace, friendship and cooperation bound nations and people together. He said in recognising the shared destiny of the Indian sub-continent, the country must strengthen connectivity, expand institutional capacity and enhance mutual trust to further regional cooperation.

Above all, he said India had engaged in promoting goodwill and prosperity in its immediate neighbourhood, and that it was heartening that the long pending boundary issue with Bangladesh had been finally resolved.

“While we offer our hand willingly in friendship, we cannot stay blind to deliberate acts of provocation and deteriorating security environment. 

India is a target of vicious terrorist groups from across the borders. 

Except the language of violence and cult of evil, these terrorists have no religion and adhere to no ideology,” he said.

Furthermore, Mr Gurusubramanian said India’s neighbours must ensure that their territory was not used by forces inimical to India, adding that the country’s policy would remain one of zero tolerance for terrorism.  

He warned that infiltration into India’s territory and attempts to create mayhem would be dealt with. 

India, which attained independence in August 1947 and the world largest democracy, is a complex country of 1.3 billion people, 122 languages, 1 600 dialects and seven religions. 

“Its strength lies in its unique capacity to blend apparent contradictions into positive affirmations,” Mr Gurusubramanian said. ENDS