Jaitley hails J&K students for excelling against odds

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said that the students of Jammu and Kashmir have shown unprecedented resilience by living in the midst of a disturbed atmosphere and yet excelling academically.

Delivering the convocation address at the 17th convocation of Jammu University here, the Finance Minister said: "If all had been well historically, given God's gift of its best pilgrimage and tourist centres, best agriculture, limited population, handicrafts, large area, etc., Jammu and Kashmir should have been theoretically the most affluent part of this country, but unfortunately the curse of insurgency struck us."

He said industries in the country prior to 1991 were mostly regulatory, while post 1991 these became market-driven and this provides huge opportunities in the country's current career market.

He told the scholars who had been awarded degrees at the convocation: "When you enter your career markets tomorrow, you will find that there is a lot of crowding at the bottom, but there is always space at the top which is vacant.

"Whether you aim to get that space or remain satisfied with mediocrity will have to be your conscious decision."

He said nowadays, India is being looked upon as a bright spot in the world because of its fast growing economy, and over the next one or two decades, "our potential to retain that position of fast growing economy -- as China did in the last three decades -- would show that the lead now belongs to India".

He said as opportunities for India and Indians are increasing now, those with degrees will enter career markets where opportunities are large.

--IANS

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