'Social peace, security are essential for inclusive growth': Hamid Ansari

Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari on Tuesday said social peace and security are essential for achieving the goal of inclusive growth, and added that non-violence has thus becomes a critical tool for creating a peaceful environment for development.

Speaking at the 16th Mahaveer Awards for Excellence in Human Endeavour presentation function, Vice President Ansari said that India's national objectives and international commitments compel it to consider human resources development, including health and education, as fundamental to poverty eradication and critical to the process of sustainable development.

"Similarly, social peace and security are essential for achieving the goal of inclusive growth. Non-violence thus becomes a critical tool for creating a peaceful environment for development," he added.

Vice President Ansari pointed out that much work had to be done to achieve, by 2015, the Millennium Development Goals and Government's efforts needed to be supplemented by the civil society, NGOs and individual citizen. He also underlined the need for integrity in "public, not so public and private lives particularly because there is a propensity to overstate our professed virtues and down play our actual vices".

The awards have been instituted by the Bhagwan Mahaveer Foundation for Excellence in Human Endeavour to four distinguished awardees who have made remarkable contribution to society in their respective fields of non-violence and vegetarianism; education; medicine and community and social service.

The awardees include Mohd Shafique Khan of Sagar, Madhya Pradesh for 'Non-violence and Vegetarianism', Gandhi Vidya Mandir of Churu, Rajasthan for'Education', R Ravi Kannan of Silchar, Assam for'Medicine' and Sushila Bohra of Jodhpur, Rajasthan for 'Community and Social service'.

Vice President Ansari commended the Bhagwan Mahaveer Foundation for the initiative to recognize individuals and institutions engaged in selfless public service and exemplary work, which will serve as inspiration for others.