The President of India, Ram nath Kovind today appealed to the well off people in different walks of life to work for the upliftment of the less privileged and give back to the society.Gracing the 18th anniversary celebrations of Swarna Bharat Trust at Venkatachalam in Nellore, the President said that whenever he met eminent scientists, technologists and others, he used to advise them on the need to give back to society.Reminding the gathering about Mahatma Gandhi’s slogan of “Back to the Villages”, the President said that Gandhiji had spoken of the need to develop villages with amenities appropriate for a dignified and simple but prosperous life.The President said that he was deeply moved by rural developmental and cultural activities undertaken by the Swarna Bharat Trust and Akshara Vidyalaya. Appreciating the people-centric and socially relevant activities of Swarna Bharat Trust, the President said that they cover many areas ranging from education to healthcare and agriculture to skills training. Describing the Vice President, Shri Venkaiah Naidu as a dear friend and colleague, the President said that Shri Naidu inspired the founding of the trust.Calling Shri Naidu a multifaceted personality, the President said that the Vice President has friends across the political spectrum and “he truly is Ajatashatru– without enemies”.“He is liked by all and trusted by all. His credibility and goodwill have helped him in his role as Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha even in challenging circumstances. The country is thankful to Nellore and to Andhra Pradesh for giving us our popular and well-liked Vice-President. And I must add here that Venkaiahji has done a lot to promote the rich Telugu culture and delicious Andhra food in Delhi,” the President added.
Earlier, the Vice President in his address expressed his gratitude to the President for graciously accepting the invitation and coming to Venkatachalam in Nellore to bless the activities of the trust.The Vice President also placed on record his appreciation for the services rendered by his friends, daughter and son by devoting their resources and time to serve the people, particularly those living in rural areas. Shri Naidu said that guided by Mahatma Gandhi’s dictum of “Back to villages”, and his profound view that Rama Rajya is incomplete without Gram Rajya, the Swarna Bharat Trust has been working relentlessly to empower and uplift the down trodden sections by imparting education and upgrading their skills.Empowering women with livelihood skills has been one of the prime objectives of the trust. Imparting vocational skills to rural youth, training artisans to be self employed and empowering farmers through new farming techniques were among the main objectives of the organisation. Shri Naidu said that the Swarna Bharat Trust also focused on creating awareness among the younger generation on the importance of our culture, traditions and values in the wake of the onslaught of western culture.Emphasising the importance of India’s core philosophy, he appealed to the younger generation to devote time for social service and work towards empowering the less privileged sections of the society. He urged them to strive towards eradicating poverty and illiteracy and promoting social harmony.The First lady Smt Savita Kovind, Smt Usha Naidu, spouse of the Vice President, the Governor of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Shri ESL Narasimhan and Andhra Pradesh Ministers Shri S Chandra Mohan Reddy, Shri N. Amarnath Reddy and Chairman of Swarna Bharat Trust, Shri Vishnu Raju and other trustees were present.Earlier the Managing Trustee of Swarna Bharat Trust Ms. Deepa Venkat welcomed the gathering.