“The concept of a welfare state is a noble one and it should also be all encompassing including in its fold the overall happiness, welfare, security and betterment of all the sections of society”.Airing the views here today at the Punjab Raj Bhawan while launching the book “Ramrajya- the people’s welfare State” authored by Tamil Nadu cadre IAS officer Mr. Jagmohan Singh Raju, the Governor of Punjab Mr. V.P. Singh Badnore emphasized on adopting Gross National Happiness Index for a Welfare State. He said that the welfare state should be evolved from being a mere concept to an ideology which must concentrate on various parameters like- general happiness, Health, Education for the sake of public welfare. He also said that one of the most significant aspects of the welfare state concept is calculating Gross National Happiness such as is being practiced in countries like-Bhutan.On the occasion an interactive as well as the question and answer session was also held which was anchored by Mrs. Sumita Mishra, Principal Secretary Cultural Affairs Haryana. Veteran Journalist and former Resident Editor the Indian Express Mr. Vipin Pubby was amongst the panelists.Prominent amongst others present on the occasion included Mr. Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Minister for Rural Development, Punjab, Justice Jatinder Chauhan , Author of the book Dr. Jagmohan Singh Raju Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu, Mr. J.M.Balamurugan, Secretary to Governor Punjab and Mrs. Anu Singh, Principal Commissioner, Income Tax.The book launch was also attended by senior bureaucrats of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jagmohan Singh Raju is an acknowledged practitioner of ethical public policy and administration. He joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in 1985 at the young age of twenty two years and, since then, has served the nation in various capacities in the Government of India and in the State of Tamilnadu for over three decades. He avowedly subscribes to excellence, measurable outcomes and accountability in public service. He steered Saakshar Bharat, the new variant of the National Literacy Mission, from 2009-14.During this short period of five years, nearly twenty five million adults, mostly women, dalits, rural poor and other marginalised sections of the society, were made literate. This unprecedented accomplishment and his other innovations in Saakshar Bharat earned worldwide recognition and won India the prestigious international UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize, 2013. In his quest for excellence in public policy, he pursued doctoral research on ‘Developing Framework of Indian Welfare State in Neo-Liberal Economy’ at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, and was awarded the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Public Policy in 2016.