Narendra Modi meets CEOs at Champions of Change event, says entrepreneurs must become soldiers of development

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed over 200 young CEOs and corporate leaders on Tuesday at Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra in New Delhi and pitched for a need for all citizens to feel a sense of belonging towards the nation. The prime minister, who met start-up CEOs last week, made time out for industrialists, including Rajeev Bajaj and Sangeeta Reddy, on Tuesday to seek their inputs on nation building. While stressing on the need for every person to feel part of the government, Modi said that if one is sitting in front of the government as a client, s/he will speak in a certain way, but if a person is part of the government, s/he will want to talk about the issues that they can work on. The prime minister further urged every citizen to feel that the country belongs to them and they have to work for its development.

#BREAKING – One shouldn’t just advice govt. as client, but should take part in decision making: PM Modi addressing young CEOs pic.twitter.com/O9h2jPI9vn

— News18 (@CNNnews18) August 22, 2017

#BREAKING – As industry leaders, think about what more you can do for the poorest of poor: PM Modi pic.twitter.com/OltXA5Ycxq

— News18 (@CNNnews18) August 22, 2017

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While acknowledging that there may be problems and obstacles, he said that every citizen should feel the need to add to the growth of the country. He further said that welfare and happiness of the people is of paramount importance for a government. [caption id=“attachment_3961881” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Narendra Modi at the event. Image courtesy: Twitter @BJP4India[/caption] Referring to Mahatma Gandhi, Modi said that while there was never a dearth of people who wanted to sacrifice their lives for India’s Independence, Gandhi did something unique. He made every person feel that s/he is working for the nation and turned the freedom struggle into a mass movement, the prime minister added. Gandhi created an atmosphere where people felt that even if they were just teaching children, they were doing it for India’s Independence, which brought about results, Modi said. In the same spirit, we also need to make India’s development a mass movement, he urged people. He called on entrepreneurs to become soldiers of development. He motivated the audience to work for the poor sections of the society. “As industry leaders, think about what more can be done for the poorest of poor. We can solve India’s problems if we work together,” he said. Talking about India Inc., Modi said that it is a great social force for poverty alleviation. “We have been using technology to bring about more transparency in systems. We should work for better healthcare system and bring infant and maternal mortality rate at par with global rates,” he added. Modi ended his address by congratulating outgoing NITI Aayog vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya. He said that despite planning to move to the US next week, Panagariya is working with the same dedication that he has displayed in the past three years. Modi said that the nation will always remember Panagariya and his services.