Vice-President’s address at the 50th Foundation Day Programme of Indian Posts & Telecommunications Accounts and Finance Service at ICWA, New Delhi

Transparency and accountability emanate normally from fiscal discipline and if you can discipline in a soothing manner like Nani or Dadi, then the lessons are learned fast.

The Minister in a short time has delivered, I would say, entire copy of homework but ladies and gentlemen, he is so grounded to reality because our per capita internet consumption is more than that of China and USA taken together.

That speaks of two things in particular, one, accessibility. You can’t use unless you have accessibility, and second, adaptability. So a nation of 1.4 billion is having that kind of a situation.

The minister alluded to the massive banking inclusion that was effected under visionary leadership of Prime Minister Modi but the impact is there, our digital transactions last year were four times the combined transactions of USA, UK, France and Germany. And it is in this perspective, I join the Minister in calling your attention, which is technically a parliamentary word. The rise is incremental, it has to be now vertical.

Friends, As your service advances, India moves purposefully towards its destiny as a developed nation by 2047, demanding unprecedented adaptability and foresight. We are at the moment, 5th largest global economy on the way to becoming 3rd in a year so ahead of Japan and Germany, and I can share with the genius of this family. To be a developed nation though no standards are set globally, but there is convergence on one aspect, per capita income and that per capita income in this country has to take a quantum jump of eight times. We have to realise the status of a developed nation.

I have no doubt in my mind that developed nation is no longer a dream, it’s our object. We are on way to it and I’m happy to share with you that in this marathon march to Viksit Bharat where every Indian is involved, the communication will be nurtured, furthered enhanced and blossomed by this family.

पूरे देश में विकसित भारत का एक बहुत बड़ा हवन हो रहा है। इस हवन में हर कोई आहुति दे रहा है। प्रधानमंत्री के विजन की वजह से हमारा सपना साकार हो रहा है। हमारा सपना हमारा लक्ष्य बन गया है, पर इसमें पूर्ण आहुति, जिसमें Communication बहुत vital है।

India’s democratic journey exemplifies how diversity and vast demographic potential can fuel national progress. We have seen it in the last 10 years. Otherwise we were part of Fragile 5. There was never an occasion when I was a minister 35 years ago that anyone  ever from global entity accoladed us. Our International Monetary Fund says we are the favourite global destination of investment opportunity, and as a tribute to this family, the World Bank President who was in India during G20 reflected what India has done in digitization in single digit years is not possible normally for anyone to accomplish in four decades plus. That was accolade!

Democracy thrives not just on systems, but on core values. If there is a family that has good income, rich income, everything around materialism is…… There has to be a core value system. Our democracy also has to form a core value system. It has to be centred on the delicate balance of expression and dialogue. These twin forces, expression and dialogue, shape democratic vitality. Their progress is measured not by individual positions, but by the broader societal benefit.

Today’s institutional challenges from within and without often stem from the erosion of meaningful dialogue and authentic expression.

अभिव्यक्ति का उद्गार और सार्थक संवाद दोनों ही प्रजातन्त्र के अमूल्य आभूषण हैं। अभिव्यक्ति भी और संवाद भी, यह एक दूसरे के पूरक हैं। दोनों में सम्मान* से ही सफलता की कुंजी है।

As we chart our path forward, we must recognise that democratic health and economic productivity are inseparable partners when it comes to national development.

Service remains our cornerstone. Your roles as administrators, financial advisors, regulators and auditors must evolve to meet tomorrow’s challenges. This evolution demands that we transform service delivery from traditional methods to cutting-edge solutions.

Let me tell you, you are aware more than I am. We are at the cusp of no less than another industrial revolution. Digital technologies have invaded us. They are with us in our home, in our office, everywhere. They offer challenges and opportunities. Artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, machine learning, blockchain and the kind. We are feeling their heat.

We have to measure up to the challenge, to convert the challenge into opportunities and make the life of everyone in this country seamlessly connected to his or her ambitions. I am happy to note that other services can emulate your methodology.

Our services need to be more dynamic. They have to adapt to rapid technological challenges, societal challenges while maintaining foundational integrity. Our privilege of nation building now carries greater responsibility because we have to script and also architect, realise the vision of a developed nation at 2047.

As a matter of fact, this country has civilisational ethos of more than 5,000 years.

Our Upanishads, our Puranas, our epics, Ramayana and Mahabharat and Gita has solution to every problem we face but what has been said in Gita ”यज्ञार्थात्कर्मणो”, gains new relevance in our tech driven era. When work becomes yagya, in this digital age, it creates transformative impact across society.

When it happens yagya, the others are not arithmetic, they are geometrical and therefore, every digital initiative becomes a building block towards Viksit Bharat at 2047. This demands innovation, thinking out of the box.

Modern civil servants must be tech savvy, facilitators of change, transcending traditional administrative boundaries.

The Minister rightly focused, security has taken a new dimension and that security is, you have to protect beyond your boundary national digital assets. It has become crucial. Cybersecurity and data integrity are vital and they are as vital as financial prudence. We have seen recently in the reports, how systems have been paralysed or made dysfunctional and the invasion was not conventional.

India is a distinct country for a simple reason that we are wedded to very strong ethical standards, and therefore, our ethical foundations must also extend into digital realm, setting new benchmarks for transparency and security.

The future, friends, demands quantum-safe encryption and blockchain-based accountability systems.

Cross-departmental collaboration becomes vital in an interconnected world. This is very important you see. We must be in synergy together, we must be in sync with each other. I have quite often impressed on everyone, the doctrine of separation of powers is nothing but that the three institutions, the judiciary, the executive and the legislature, they must act in tandem and togetherness. They must act in harmony.

Trust me, there will ever be issues in the family or in the system. Issues are organic.

Issues help us go forward like a failure. A failure is not a setback, it propels you to attain success next time.

Transformation is inevitable, but the transformation must be accompanied by ethics and our ethos. Transform from guardians of traditional systems to architects of digital governance, enabling next-generation service delivery.

The ego in us is irrepressible, we have to work very hard to control our ego. Ego serves no one, but damages most the person who posses it.

Friends, focus on bridging the digital divide through innovative financing models for rural technology adoption. I’m so happy to note it’s a priority with the Honourable Minister. With the world’s largest youth population, which we call demographic dividend envy of everyone in the world, India’s demographic dividend offers unprecedented opportunities. Your digital initiatives must harness this young talent pool through skilled development and digital entrepreneurship.

Now there is an ecosystem that allows opportunities to every youth in the country on account of affirmative initiatives and government policies.

Friends, audit, self-audit is very important. The surest way to bring about degeneration of an individual or an institution, it will keep it or the gentleman or gentle lady from scrutiny. You are  beyond scrutiny, your degeneration is assured.

And therefore, self-audit, an audit beyond self, is essential and I therefore strongly urge, adopt artificial intelligence-powered audit systems while maintaining human oversight for critical decisions. Shared policies that balance innovation with stability and ensuring India’s digital leadership while creating opportunities for our youth.