The office of the Post-graduate Programme in Public Policy Management (PGPPM), in association with the Public Policy Club (PPC), hosted a summit titled ‘Utthan’, based on the theme, ‘Bridging the gap — Innovative and inclusive India’.
Utthan 2019 was an open forum where leaders and experts from different government and private institutions came together on a single platform to debate and discuss the various nuances of formulating public policies and how the underlying systems operate in accordance with these policies to ensure continual development.
CN Ashwath Narayan, Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, on a video call, said, “As a country, we have a long way to go in leveraging the benefits of technology. Only when people can use technology seamlessly will it be beneficial. The theme of Utthan is laudable. When it comes to technology and innovation, we have always demonstrated our commitment to take the necessary steps to ensure technology and innovation reaches the masses. There is a need for all the sections of the society — students, academicians, policy-makers — to work together to make India a developed nation.”
Innovation in infrastructure
Sanjiv Garg, Managing Director at Pipavav Railway Corporation Limited (PRCL), shared his views about how management institutions can play an important role in honing and sharpening the managerial and analytical skills of future managers. He said, “Managers are born, they cannot be made. A good manager should critically analyse any issue that’s brought before him and express his views frankly and fearlessly.”
G Raghuram, Director, IIM Bangalore, spoke about public-private partnerships, one of the first innovations that came in the ogranisational and structural sense of developing infrastructure. Addressing the gathering as a part of panel discussion on ‘Innovation in infrastructure’, G Raghuram added that, “Project structuring, risk appraisal, fund sourcing, tendering and bidding, and concession agreements are some other key innovations that have helped bring innovation in infrastructure.”
Inclusive development
The event incorporated a panel discussion on ‘Roadmap for inclusive development’ comprising eminent speakers namely Abha Singh, former bureaucrat, social Activist and lawyer, Nazia Erum, Author, Media and Advocacy — Amnesty International India, and Tabrez Ahmad, Group Director, Government Affairs and Public Policy, Dell Technologies.
The session was moderated by Maya Sharma, executive editor, NDTV. The panellists discussed and revealed some crucial roadblocks for inclusive India in getting the common people, especially women, heard and included. Tabrez said, “One stakeholder alone cannot bring the change. It is a community effort.”