The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : `We have an obligation to wipe out poverty'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jan 31, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

`We have an obligation to wipe out poverty'

By Our Staff Reporter

MASTERS WITH HONOURS: Cerebral palsy-affected scholar G.J. Siddharth with Union Minister for Finance, P. Chidambaram, after receiving his Masters degree in Economics. Mr. Siddharth, who passed with distinction, will soon be joining the BPO wing of ABN-AMRO Bank. — Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

CHENNAI, JAN. 30. "Education imposes a great obligation upon us — to wipe out poverty in this country," said the Union Minister for Finance, P. Chidambaram, addressing the graduates of Loyola College at a convocation ceremony.

He urged them to shake off the "dead weight of habit and tradition" and stand up for their beliefs and emphasised the role of educated youth in making India an "economic powerhouse."

With a society that is getting younger and more productive — the size of the productive population is on the increase — India must leverage its demographic advantage to turn its economic fortunes around, said Mr. Chidambaram.

"India is not a poor country, but a country with many poor people," he said, emphasising that poverty was not our fate but an affliction contracted due to years of neglect.

He pointed out that under the British rule, Indian economy grew barely by 1 per cent per annum. "The British did not bring us either good governance or prosperity." However, many other countries that got independence during the second half of the twentieth century have moved ahead, he said.

Many of them are able to give food, clothing, shelter, education, work, leisure and opportunity to all their citizens, he said. India is lagging because of the inability of its citizens to work together towards a defined objective.He stressed the need for India to open up both socially and economically. "All winds must blow through our house. We need to open our doors and windows to all ideas."

Mr. Chidambaram, also an alumnus of Loyola College, handed over degrees to 36 gold medallists and 12 physically challenged students among over 1,000 graduating students.

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