Enlightened civil society vital for functioning democracy: Rajnath Singh

A robust and enlightened Civil society is essential for a functioning democracy, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in Rajasthan's Jaipur on Saturday.

He said that it enables the citizens to engage in deliberative dialogues and cooperative efforts, outside the adversarial arena of electoral politics, towards achieving national objectives.

Singh was addressing the C20 summit, an official engagement group of G20 in Jaipur.

He said there are various sectors, ranging from education to the health sector, from gender equality to environment, where both Governments and Civil Society institutions have worked hand-in-hand and have achieved significant quantifiable progress.

"In the immediate context of present-day India, many of the Government's landmark initiatives such as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Abhiyan, etc., which have brought significant transformational and attitudinal changes in the society, were complemented by the herculean efforts made by various Civil Society Organizations in these fields," Rajnath Singh said.

He added, "Civil Society organizations can act as force-multipliers for the governments. In India, Civil Society organizations have made many noteworthy contributions in improving the quality of life of our people, particularly in the health and education sector".

The Civil 20 Engagement Group, or the C20, which was launched as an official G20 Engagement Group in 2013, plays a very crucial and important role under the rubric of G20. It provides a platform for Civil Society Organizations from around the world to bring forth non-governmental perspectives on the issues being taken up by the official G20, he said.

"It gives an alternative, non-governmental voice to the people's aspirations from across the globe. I am aware that there are various C20 working groups, which are working on diverse domains ranging from Integrated Holistic Health, Education and Digital Transformation, Gender Equality to Technology, Security, and Transparency. These have the potential to impact official policies and programs, across all the dimensions of social, economic and environmental challenges that we face today," Singh further said.

The event was attended by spiritual guru Mata Amritanandamayi, the chancellor of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham and many delegates from India and abroad.