PM Modi urges govt-university-youth collaboration to bring fresh ideas to policymaking

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday called for greater engagement between government departments, universities and young people to bring fresh and unconventional ideas into policymaking. Chairing the third high-level meeting with secretaries, he stressed the importance of collective effort, citing the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and the West Asia crisis as examples of successful inter-departmental coordination.

The Prime Minister's remarks come against the backdrop of student protests over the NEET paper leak, which took place at Jantar Mantar in Delhi and in other parts of the country last month. The protests, which demanded action against those responsible for the alleged leak, led to the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. PM Modi reached out to students on multiple occasions through social media after the demonstrations, underscoring his outreach to younger generations.

According to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office, Modi called for greater engagement between government departments, universities and young people to develop fresh perspectives in policymaking. In a post on X, he said he discussed with the secretaries the future action agenda of ministries and departments pertaining to infrastructure and connectivity, security and external affairs.

"Emphasised the need for effective use of data and AI, wider engagement with universities, as well as greater focus on research and innovation across sectors," he wrote.

The Prime Minister emphasised that data is a national asset and a resource for the future, and called for effective use of artificial intelligence while ensuring human intervention and judgement. He pointed to differences in the manner in which data is collected and managed for various purposes, and called for finding solutions that allow greater interoperability.

Modi also called for greater focus on research and innovation, especially in the defence sector, to make it more competitive at the global level. He discussed the need for a comprehensive approach to strengthening India's maritime sector, noting that shipbuilding was accorded infrastructure status. He called for assessing whether the intended objectives of this status are being achieved.

The Prime Minister reiterated the need for India to move from port development to port-led development. He emphasised the need for better connectivity between manufacturing units and export-oriented units to fully leverage the nation's maritime infrastructure.

Modi said that secretaries, in addition to thinking about immediate issues and statistics, should also think with a long-term perspective on shaping the country's future. He asserted that silos are not merely an organisational problem but also a problem of mindset, and exhorted officials to take ownership of their responsibilities.

The Prime Minister encouraged senior officers to develop greater personal and informal engagement with junior colleagues and to build stronger networks across cadres and departments. He said that such engagement can bring new and unconventional ideas.

During the meeting, the secretaries shared their experiences on sectoral priorities, emerging challenges and implementation issues.