In the past seven years there have been multiple revolutions in the country such as in the areas of infrastructure and technology which will ensure new opportunities for the youth, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.
Mr. Modi was speaking at the grand finale of Smart India Hackathon 2022, in which more than two lakh students participated to provide innovative solutions for 476 problem statements from 53 different government departments.
"In the 1960s and 70s there was Green Revolution where the farmers made us self-reliant in terms of food grains. But in the past 7-8 years the country has made many such revolutions and is progressing. Infrastructure revolution, health sector revolution, digital revolution, technological revolution, talent revolution in agriculture, education, defence. In every sector there is an emphasis on innovation and self-reliance. And that is why there are new opportunities for the youth in drone technology, tele consultation, digital solutions, from service to manufacture there are many possibilities for the youth," the Prime Minister said.
He highlighted the expansion of optical fibre network across all villages, and launch of 5G shortly as well as preparation for the launch of 6G by the end of the decade and the government's push for digital solutions in gaming and entertainment.
Respect for innovation
He said as a result of all these developments there was greater acceptability and respect for innovation and enterprise in the society today.
"The youth of the 21st century India is moving forward with confidence. That is the reason why our ranking in innovation index in the past eight years has improved; our patents have increased by seven times and there are more than 100 unicorns," the Prime Minister said.
Mr. Modi said the government did not believe that it had solutions for all the problems and that was why it had urged the youth to give solutions through the Hackathon.
During the webcast, the Prime Minister spoke to some of the participants, among whom were students from Kerala who developed an application to translate inscriptions in ancient temples into Devnagari, another group of students shared the details of their "smart knee actuator" — a medical device to help people with knee-related problems. Another school student shared a web-based game for dementia patients to provide them art therapy, among others.
