This year on February 18, I took oath as the Governor of Jharkhand. Initially, people welcomed me and asked me to visit their villages in remote districts. Considering the request made by the people, I travelled to all 24 districts of Jharkhand in four months. The extensive review meetings with district officials about the progress made on the welfare schemes and community events helped me understand the local culture and the challenges of development on the ground level. At the same time, the people’s affection, compassion and patience touched me.
During the visit, the youth asked for schools and colleges that offer quality and meaningful learning, leading to employability. Women shared their hardships in getting health services and drinking water, and small farmers demanded irrigation facilities. The villagers also shared incidents of corruption while availing of the welfare schemes of the governments. Small pieces of land are the primary source of livelihood for a substantial number of villagers, and in many places, village and urban groups demanded digitisation of the land records as land scams were rampant in the state. People voiced their inability to fight a legal battle with land mafias and wished that a fast-track court would resolve cases of land disputes. Common citizens seem fearful of the frequently violent acts of criminals. Accelerated and honest investigations are needed to eliminate the mafias and armed groups’ activities.
I remember the words of Mahatma Gandhi in which he said that whenever you have doubts or the self becomes too much with you, remember the face of the poorest and most helpless person you have seen and ask yourself: Is the work I am doing going to do any good to that woman/man? Will there be any change in their life and destiny?
I find the moral support and strength to do my duties by remembering these questions. In review meetings of senior officials, I have emphasised that we are all here to serve the people as “lok sevaks”, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also emphasised. During my visits, the administration organises events to offer the benefits of the central and state government sponsored schemes. There are centrally sponsored schemes such as PM Awas Yojana, PM Ujjawala Yojana, Har Ghar Nal Yojana, Antyodaya Anna Yojana and Universal Pension Yojana and state–funded schemes like Janani Suraksha Yojana, Pashu Dhan Yojana, Phulo-Jhano Aashirwad Abhiyan and many more for villagers. Jharkhand has several Eklavya Schools, Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas, School of Excellence etc., to educate girls and boys with better services, but in general, the villagers lack awareness of the governmental schemes dedicated to uplifting their life conditions. I appreciate the dynamism of some government officials and Self-help Groups (SHGs) for trying innovative ideas to eradicate poverty, raise awareness, and ensure happiness in the villages. The scale and sincerity must be enhanced so the benefits can reach eligible persons.
Our constitutional ethos keeps reminding me that the basis of having a large machinery of bureaucracy and political establishments in a democracy is to serve the public. Our collective responsibility and moral obligation is to improve people’s lives. Unless we effectively implement the welfare schemes and raise the bar for essential services such as health education, drinking water, transformation of the workforce will be a challenge. I encourage government officials, volunteer organisations and others to accelerate the pace of developmental work so that the distress migration of Jharkhand’s children, youth, and women can be stopped. I have seen hard-working people of Jharkhand working in big cities and sending money back home so that the next generation can dream of a good life. Taking the aspiration forward, boys and girls from villages cycle to schools and universities. The growing demand for schools and institutes of higher education is just a manifestation of their dreams.
A sincere effort would bring high dividends for Jharkhand. Converting unskilled labour into skilled employees, graduates into professionals and transforming institutions with the help of technology can pull up villagers from the ambit of extreme poverty. I aspire and am committed to seeing the youth of Jharkhand working in the state and other cities like Delhi, Chennai and Bengaluru with distinction and dignity.
Jharkhand has immense potential to become the foremost state and contribute to making India an economic superpower. The state has witnessed advancement in some sectors like road and electricity in the last two decades. Nature has given ample resources to Jharkhand. The forests and wildlife, abundant biodiversity, lovely waterfalls, pleasant climate, and ethnic diversity with folk arts and dance make Jharkhand unique from a tourist perspective and should be promoted at various forums. The strategic use of natural resources with honest planning is crucial to the public’s prosperity as Jharkhand will be celebrating the 25th anniversary of its statehood in the coming years.
The talented girls and boys of the state have made a mark in sports like hockey, football, archery, athletics and many more. If appropriately groomed, potential talents can do miracles in sports, academia, medicine, technology, robotics, cinema, and other emerging fields of knowledge and creativity. The existing institutions of the state should excel in their domain and must open new avenues for the youth of Jharkhand.
I interacted with the Vice-Chancellors of the state universities and realised that higher education institutions should have a strategic plan of 10-15 years to cater effectively to the students graduating in greater numbers from secondary schools. Universities should have an effective linkage with school education and must provide a global perspective to students. I understand that universities have been facing the challenges of staff shortages and promotion of faculty members, and I hope the Jharkhand University Service Commission will be functional soon. The commission will handle university recruitment with transparency and quality parameters as we are committed to zero corruption in universities.
In enhancing the quality of higher education and research, things will start changing if teachers ask themselves, does my teaching meet students’ expectations? If it seems unsatisfactory to students, the teacher must improve the content and lesson delivery mechanism. If a research study does not add value to the world of knowledge, should we call it a scholarly work? Teachers should remember that we live in an age where technology can’t be ignored, and our students should be prepared for the 21st century. Only good educational institutions can develop future leaders, which can be done with the teacher’s experience and updated knowledge. It’s the accountability of the universities to give wings to the dreams of young students coming to the campus.
People in Jharkhand believe in hard work and being self-sustained. I have seen that whether it is Ranchi, Khunti, Palamu or Lohardaga, women are running businesses, managing tea shops, dhabas and restaurants, and working in fields, hospitals, anganwadis and schools.
I found the opportunity to welcome Her Excellency, President Draoupadi Murmu in Jharkhand. We travelled together to witness the splendid work being done by SHGs in Khunti and other places. Their work is a source of inspiration for millions. When I asked a group of women about the secret of their success, they said, “Collectively, we have achieved success! Togetherness is our strength.” This beautifully articulated message is the mantra for all of us. If we move forward in this direction, tomorrow will be better than today. Currently, the state has been placed on a lower ranking as far as economic development is concerned. This aspect should be taken up on a priority basis as the state has all the ingredients to become a developed one. We can achieve anything in the competitive world through intelligent planning, collective efforts, using relevant skills and working hard with transparency and innovative thinking. Lord Buddha had also stated “we become what we think”. I am sure that in the coming days, Jharkhand’s prominent presence will be noticed on the map of India.
The writer is the Governor of Jharkhand
During the visit to all 24 districts of Jharkhand, the youth asked for schools and colleges that offer quality and meaningful learning, leading to employability, writes Jharkhand Governor C P Radhakrishnan. (Twitter/@jhar_governor) 
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