India’s Development to be Achieved by 2047: Rajnath Singh

India is set to become a developed country by 2047, according to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Speaking at the convocation of a private university in Bihar, Singh highlighted the rapid economic progress the country has made, and noted with pleasure that people are increasingly appreciative of India’s cultural roots, evident in the use of the name Bharat instead of India by foreigners. Compared to 2014, when India was at the bottom of the top ten global economies, the country has made impressive strides in recent years, moving up to the top five since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office. Singh cited a recent report by Morgan Stanley that predicts India will be among the top three world economies by 2027, and pushed for the country to strive to become a fully-developed nation by the time it celebrates the centenary of its independence. Singh also discussed the importance of dharma, which he said relates to character rather than forms and places of worship. He encouraged the audience to place value on all life forms, even those that are generally viewed as harmful to humans. Lastly, Singh underscored the importance of values by comparing software giant Infosys and terrorist organization Al Qaeda, highlighting the role of sanskaar in differentiating between success and failure. To make his points more relatable to the young audience, Singh used some personal anecdotes and even used algebra and geometry to better explain certain concepts.