By IANS
New Delhi : In what appeared to be an allusion to the ongoing debate on the civilian nuclear deal with the US, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Friday called for exorcising the ghosts of the past “so that India may truly make its tryst with destiny”.
“The world is looking at India with renewed hope, as it did in the first decade after Independence. This is, I believe, India’s moment, let us not dither; let us not shy away in fear of some ghosts in our mind so that India may truly make its tryst with destiny,” the prime minister maintained.
He was speaking here at a function at which President Pratibha Patil released a book in honour of Madhya Pradesh Governor Balram Jakhar to mark his 85th birthday.
Manmohan Singh lamented that “far too much of our political life is focused on the here and now. Far too much of political discourse is obsessed with the past and is ignorant about the future”.
“We need people who can think into the future and look at the challenges of tomorrow and take the country forward. If we remain divided, defensive, disruptive in our discourse, our children and our grandchildren will not forgive us. They will find us wanting in the scale of history for not having had the courage to grapple with the real challenges of our time,” the prime minister added.
Manmohan Singh did not refer, even indirectly, to the India-US nuclear deal but his remarks were clearly aimed at its opponents. The Left parties that support the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and the opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA) have called for either scrapping or negotiating the deal.
The prime minister has steadfastly stood by the deal, saying that India could not afford to miss the “nuclear bus”.
“There is today talk the world over of a nuclear renaissance and we cannot afford to miss the bus or lag behind these global developments,” he has said on an earlier occasion.
“India needs…men of courage and conviction in our public life. Leaders who have their finger on the pulse of our people and who have the courage to think of the future,” the prime minister maintained at the book release.
Manmohan Singh also paid rich tributes to Jakhar, who served two terms as the Lok Sabha Speaker and as the agriculture minister.
“Balram Jakhar is a soldier on the agrarian front of great distinction. His generation liberated India from external dependence on food. Today, when we have launched a drive for the second Green Revolution and we seek a quantum jump in agricultural production, in farmer’s incomes and living standards, in rural infrastructure and agricultural research, the nation looks to leaders like Dr. Balram Jakhar for inspiration,” the prime minister said.