“The building of the ‘Rama Setu’ by Sri Rama to cross over to Lanka is one of the earliest examples of ‘jugaad’. The available material was used, and the work was carried out by monkeys and even a squirrel,” he said.
‘Jugaad’ was the theme of the 2017 Entrepreneurs’ Organization Global University conference held in the city. The conference was attended by business owners, leading entrepreneurs and young entrepreneurs.
Talking on ‘Jugaad’ or ‘improvisation’ at a conference, he said some would like to call it ‘frugal innovation’ as well. “It is the art of maximizing returns wisely utilizing scarce resources,” explained.
Venkaiah Naidu said in recent times, the spirit of Jugaad was evident in a number of initiatives. He cited the example of the design of Nano car, the Dabbawallas of Mumbai who deliver two lakh lunch boxes daily and Sonam Wangchuck’s ice stupas or artificial glaciers in Ladakh that provide water to farmers when they need it most.
He said the spirit of Jugaad was the ability to create ‘value’ by a creative, innovative and frugal use of available materials. It certainly makes economic sense because it is the hallmark of efficiency. “It also makes environmental sense because it calls for careful choice to be made. It prevents reckless exploitation and wastage,” he said.
The Vice-President was speaking at the 2017 Entrepreneurs’ Organization Global University conference in the city. The conference was attended by business owners, leading entrepreneurs and young entrepreneurs.
Venkaiah Naidu said along with these governmental initiatives, the youth must be equipped to take on challenges and access emerging opportunities.
“Youth must be given the inspiration, information and insights. They must be given the necessary motivation and mentored. They must be given access to technical and financial resources and opportunity to acquire new skills and get updated,” he said.
Talking about the ‘reform to transform’ initiative taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said the government was committed to building a New India. He pointed out that the focus now was more on job creation.
“Employment and entrepreneurship are receiving equal attention,” he said. Entrepreneurship is a new promising but challenging pathway to prosperity and growth.
The vice-president said India was one of the youngest nations in the world with around 62% of its population in the working age group of 15-59 years and nearly 54% of its total population below 25 years of age. “This poses a formidable challenge and huge opportunity. India is striving to provide the requisite skills and create a conducive environment for youth to enter the world of work either as employees or as employers,” he said.
Venkaiah Naidu said the government had launched a number of initiatives including Skill India, Start-up India and Make in India which help build an eco-system for nurturing entrepreneurship in the country. “No more red-tapism, only red carpet for businesses. Steps are also being taken for making it easy to start and run businesses,” he said.
The vice president said both Demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax system were steps taken with a long term view. “They are meant for achieving long term goals of more revenue for the Government of India. Ultimately the fruits of it will be given to the society spending revenue on social developmental schemes,” he said.
Explaining LPG as Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation, Venkaiah Naidu said ‘we could not do without these.’
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Source : timesofindia
