Leadership Must Be Rooted in Nationalism for India’s Global Rise – says Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar

The Vice-President, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar, today observed that leadership must be deeply wedded to nationalism and that the nation must be kept at the centre to serve the greater good of the nation. The Vice-President further proposed research in India, innovate in India, and design in India. He said, economic nationalism is fundamental to our growth. Expressing concern over the volume of export of Indian raw materials, he urged the stakeholders to develop economic ethics on not exporting our raw materials without value addition.

While addressing the Indian School of Business Leadership Summit 2024 at Mohali, the Vice-President underscored, India’s rise in the world would mean global peace, global stability, and global harmony. He also underscored India’s century is not desirous of hegemony or domination but global public good. Stressing on leadership in India’s century, he said that India needs next generation leaders who can drive innovation and change.  He also emphasised on creating leaders who find Indian solutions for Indian and global problems and creating partnerships to resolve challenges of everyday Indian.

Vice-President highlighted the dangers of indoctrination, likening it to “giving hard sugar to a diabetic patient,” adding, It is creating enemies of the nation from outside, only by making their life affordable. He warned against the increasing trend of young leaders being manipulated and groomed through fellowships, visiting programs, and university affiliations, saying, they are brainwashed, indoctrinated.

The Vice-President highlighted the dangers of indoctrination, emphasising that it is creating enemies of the nation from outside, only by making their life affordable. He warned against the increasing trend of young leaders being manipulated and groomed through fellowships, visiting programs, and university affiliations, saying, they are brainwashed, indoctrinated.

Shri Dhankhar emphasized the critical role that nationalism must play in leadership training, urging institutions to incorporate it as a core component of leadership programs.  Nationalism should be a part of leadership curriculum. It is the foremost curriculum as a matter of fact, he stressed. An individual committed to nationalism will be able to thwart these moves. Even by being a part of it, he will be able to stand on his own spinally and thereby neutralize such forces, he said.

Addressing the significance of grassroots leadership, the Vice-President emphasized that India is the only country with constitutionally structured democracy extending to the village and municipal levels. He remarked, “We have leadership now constitutionally structured at the village level because India is the only country that has constitutionally structured democracy at village level, at municipal level. Most nations have legislatures at state and central levels.

Shri Dhankhar remarked that Indian talent is increasingly relevant globally and that Indian human resource is dominating global discourse when it comes to corporate heads driving interest everywhere. He further highlighted the transformation that India has undergone in the last decade, becoming a $4 trillion economy with 8% growth potential, expanding infrastructure with four new airports, one metro system built yearly, 500 million bank accounts in the shortest time, 6.5 billion digital transactions monthly.

Shri Dhankhar also emphasized the governance is dictated only by principles of transparency and accountability and that the youth now have an ecosystem where they can fully exploit their talent as power corridors have been duly sanitized of corrupt elements. Exhorting the youth by referring to them as the leaders-in-making, he urged them to serve the nation with full dedication and be the ambassadors of economic nationalism for the nation.

Shri Gulab Chand Kataria, Governor of Punjab, Shri Rakesh Bharti Mittal, Vice-Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, Shri Madan Pillutla, Dean, Indian School of Business and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.