ELURU: At a time when a heated debate is going on the proposed three capital cities in the State, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu has pitched for decentralised development, but is quick to distance himself from the ongoing controversy describing it as an administrative matter, which has to be decided by the people.
“Development has to be distributed and more focus should be laid on rural areas to check migration,” he said, while addressing the first convocation of NIT, Tadepallegudem in West Godavari district on Tuesday.
“We are moving from rural areas to urban areas as education, entertainment, employment and enhanced medical facilities are concentrated there,” he said and blamed it on the faulty system and stressed decentralisation of at least some of those facilities.
“Locating NIT at Tadepalligudem and not at the district headquarters was taken for this reason. When I was Union minister, I was very firm on this decision,” he said and observed that if all facilities and opportunities are in district headquarters, capital or Delhi, all would go there, hence decentralisation, distribution and re-development were the need of the hour.
“I am not talking about politics and controversy about the capital. That’s an administrative matter. It is for you people to decide,” he clarified.
He said urban spaces are engines of growth, but unfortunately, towns and cities have exceeded their carrying capacity and are choking.
He said most prosperous cities are also home to large slums and stressed the need for cities to grow inclusively and sustainably.
“We must check distress migration by providing quality healthcare, education, and economic opportunities in rural areas. Urban development is possible only when we achieve rural development,” he observed.
Teach students how to manage stress: V-P
Expressing concern over reports of young students resorting to extreme steps due to stress, the Vice President said that campuses must be the safest spaces in the country and urged all higher educational institutions to take extra care to teach youngsters to manage stress. He wanted technical education institutions to nurture life skills and instill moral values in students. He said that every graduate passing out of such institutions must not only be academically proficient but also ethical, compassionate and honest