Listen to Needs of People and Work Towards Upliftment of SCs, Minorities: PM Modi Tells LGs, Governors

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday asked governors and lieutenant governors to listen to the needs of the people and work towards uplift of the underprivileged sections of the society, including minorities.

He made these remarks at a conference of governors and lieutenant governors here.

He also made a special mention of healthcare, education and tourism sectors where there were new opportunities waiting to be harnessed for job generation and betterment of the poor and downtrodden, a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office said.

Modi said as they work to discharge their constitutional responsibilities, the governor and LGs should listen to the needs of the common man.

The prime minister urged the governors to work towards uplift of the underprivileged sections of the population, including the scheduled tribes, minority communities, women and the youth, which includes working with state governments and utilising the existing schemes and initiatives," the statement said.

He said that the institution of governor has a special role to play in realising a cooperative and competitive federal structure.

Modi observed that as India celebrates the 75th anniversary of its independence in 2022 and the 100th anniversary in 2047, the role of the governor in bringing the administrative machinery closer to the people of the country and showing them the correct path becomes even more important.

"As we celebrate 70 years of the framing of the Indian Constitution, governors and state governments should also work towards highlighting the service aspects of the Indian Constitution, in particular the duties and responsibilities of the citizens. This will help to bring about participatory governance in the truest sense," he was quoted as saying.

He pointed out that governor's office could also be used for specific objectives like spreading awareness about tuberculosis and making India free of this disease by 2025.

In their roles as chancellors of universities, governors could help inculcate the values of nation building among our youth and help to inspire them towards greater achievements, the prime minister said.

He was of the view that due to their administrative structure, Union territories can emerge as a role model in terms of development.

At the 50th annual governors' conference, 17 first time governors and lieutenant governors, including the Lt. Governors of the newly formed union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, participated .

President Ram Nath Kovind, who inaugurated the two-day conference said, Governors and Lt governors have an important role to play in the constitutional system of the country especially when the emphasis is on cooperative and competitive federalism.

Emphasising on their role in governance, Kovind said, "Today the governors' role becomes even more important when we are emphasising on cooperative federalism and healthy competitive federalism in the interest of progress of the country."

In an emphatic reference to the welfare of tribals, he said their development and empowerment is linked to inclusive growth as well as to internal security of the country.

"Governors can give all the proper guidance by using the constitutional powers given to them, to improve the lives of these people, which have remained relatively behind in terms of development," the President said.