Biggest mistake of governments is to think they can bring change on their own: PM Narendra Modi

Modi told students that questioning lies at the heart of innovation.

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said the biggest mistake any government can make is to think that they alone can bring about change. He further said change is possible only with participative governance and the will of the people.

PM Modi made these remarks while addressing the 2nd Smart India Hackathon through videoconferencing. The grand finale of the software edition of the Hackathon is being held in Karnataka's Hubballi.

"Nobody is blessed with all the knowledge in the world. This applies to Governments too. The biggest mistake governments make is to think they alone can bring about change," said PM Modi. "What brings about change is participative governance," he added.

He also termed 'shram shakti' and 'iccha shakti' - the power of effort and will power respectively - as the biggest assets of any nation. He said anything becomes possible for a nation once the people decide to bring about change.

He also called on the young people of the country to think 'out of the box' to find solutions to problems, and urged them to keep asking questions about the problems they face. "Innovation is not merely a word. Nor is it restricted to events or occasions. Innovation is a continuous process. Questioning is an important aspect of innovation. Never shy away from questioning," he said.

He also called for innovation to be structured to be able to derive maximum benefit. To this end, he suggested 'IPPP- Innovate, Patent, Produce, and Prosper.' He said following such a process would make it easier for the wide diffusion of the innovation to lead to increased prosperity.

PM Modi also expressed happiness that more than half the projects that had been selected at the first Smart India Hackathon last year have been completed, with more nearing completion.

The Smart India Hackathon is organised by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and is aimed at becoming a platform to infuse government setups with fresh solutions and thinking.

It is structured into two editions - software and hardware. The hardware edition, to be held later this year, is focussed on building of hardware solutions for different requirements and problems posed by various departments of the Union government.

The software edition - the grand finale of which Modi addressed - is a 36-hour non-stop event where technology students will strive to build digital solutions for challenges faced by various arms of the Central government.

The event also is intended to function as a funnel for various start-up promotion programmes, including NASSCOM's 10,000 Start-ups initiative.