‘India needs to widen economic base to meet security challenges’

PATIALA:The Centre for Developmental Economics and Innovation Studies (CDEIS) of Punjabi University in collaboration with the Department of Defence Studies organised a lecture on “National Security Challenges” at Senate Hall here today.

Punjabi University Vice-Chancellor Prof BS Ghuman, along with others, honours Lt Gen KJ Singh (retd) during a lecture at Punjabi University in Patiala on Thursday. Tribune photo

Tribune News Service

Patiala, February 15

The Centre for Developmental Economics and Innovation Studies (CDEIS) of Punjabi University in collaboration with the Department of Defence Studies organised a lecture on “National Security Challenges” at Senate Hall here today.

Vice-Chancellor Prof BS Ghuman said, “Only cordial and harmonious relations removed away from any kind of consideration of bitterness or wars, may be direct, proxy or cold ones, could pave the way for overall development, especially between the neighbouring nations.” He referred it to the Indo-Pak relations.

Prof Ghuman added that there was an urgent need to strengthen the base and overall structure of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) as a happening institution like the European Union with India playing the fatherly figure.

Regional peace was more importance for Punjab as being a border state, it was paying a very heavy price in contrast to West Bengal, which with the help of the Central government, has developed affable with Bangladesh, the Vice-Chancellor said.

India also needs to widen its economic base like China as to meet the national security challenges, Prof Ghuman added.

While dwelling upon such elements like strengths, challenges, opportunities and threat, Lt Gen KJ Singh (Retd), Chairman of the Ranjit Singh Chair of Excellence, Chandigarh, said, Chinese slowdown at the moment was a golden opportunity for India to play the ‘balancing act’ in the pacific region.

India-Bharat disconnect, lack of national consensus on key issues, hypersensitive media and inter-state disputes, coupled with pandemics, erratic diplomacy and critical infrastructure, the other key determinants, harming India’s chances of growth, lessening the opportunities and increasing the threats to India’s security, he added.

Dr Lakhwinder Gill, head of the Economics Department and CDEIS, said the concept of security was changing with parametres related to it at a rapid pace, showing a paradigm shift. It has to perceive from multiple angles instead of focusing on singular issues at a time.