The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Tharoor: time to introspect, act

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Thursday, Feb 07, 2008
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Tharoor: time to introspect, act

Staff Reporter

‘Let State be trailblazer of changes’

Photo: C. Ratheesh kumar

New ideas: Writer Shashi Tharoor delivering a lecture in the city on Wednesday.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Writer and former Under Secretary General of the United Nations Shashi Tharoor has said that the State must seriously introspect why its people excel in various fields outside the State, but are unable to perform well within.

Mr. Tharoor made these observations while giving a lecture on ‘Transformation of modern India’ organised by the V. K. Krishna Menon Study Centre for International Relations of the Kerala University and at the annual convention of the Trivandrum Management Association here on Wednesday.

He said there was a need to look beyond ideologies. Kerala should not remain excluded from the changes that are happening around the world and must strive to be the trailblazer of those changes. There must be efforts to identify the factors which create the impression that Kerala is investor-unfriendly.

Hartal out, hard work in

Even while giving concession to the view that collective social struggles had contributed to social development of the State, it must be recognised that those strategies of ‘yesterdays’ may not be relevant for the future. Hartals and bandhs are not the best practices for the present and future era, where hard work is crucial.

Pointing out that ‘globalisation versus self-reliance’ has been a subject of intense debate both within the country and outside for long, Mr. Tharoor said this debate seemed to have been settled in rest of the country, including in West Bengal, while it was still active in Kerala.

He quoted the West Bengal Chief Minister’s statement that it was not possible and desirable to resist globalisation in a recent meeting in Kolkata.

Ideal ideals

However, he said, none could denigrate socialistic ideals, which aspire to ensure that food, education and other basic necessities, besides justice are not denied to any.

No society can progress without nurturing ideals of egalitarianism, he added.

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