Engage with national issues to protect democracy, President tells Indians

President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday urged Indians to actively engage in important issues facing the country to protect and advance the "noisier" Indian democracy.

Speaking at the launch of a book penned by Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked of the importance of family values, saying despite technological advances the family continues to be the country's biggest strength.

"Democracy is always noisy and our democracy is noisier. But it always pays if we engage ourselves with issues," Mukherjee said while releasing Ansari's book 'Citizen and Society' at Rashtrapati Bhavan here.

"We cannot forget that without effective engagement, we can't achieve success and protect our democracy.

"It cannot be preserved, protected and advanced automatically. I thought it would be my duty to draw the attention of the Indian citizens to these aspects which our Vice- President has done with elan," said Mukherjee.

He also stressed the importance of nurturing the marvel of Indian diversity flourishing under one flag and Constitution.

Modi said: "Technology has turned citizens into netizens, traditional boundaries are being obliterated and our thinking is fast changing. Still, between the citizens and the society, we have a unit that we call the family, which traditionally has been our biggest strength."

"We should be proud to be a country of so many dialects and languages, and so many different faiths, living in harmony. We have this legacy which we need to protect and promote," he added.

Speaking about his book, Ansari said his volume was a collection of lectures on diverse themes such as polity, security and empowerment.

--IANS

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