Shillong: Pointing out that the world is about positive competition and positive criticism, Meghalaya Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma on Wednesday stressed on the need to compete with the best.
“The reservation policy is there for us but that does not mean that our mindset has to be a ‘reservation policy mindset’ but one of a competitive mindset,” he said addressing a gathering after he felicitated the district talent winners of Aspire Meghalaya District Talents Events 2022 at U Soso Tham Auditorium.
“Fight as if you need to survive. Fight as if there is no reservation for you. Fight as if you are going to compete with the best from the world. It is that competitive mindset that I want in every single youth,” the Chief Minister emphasized.
Aspire Meghalaya’s District Talent Events 2022 commenced on October 6 with events scheduled to be held across all districts in October and November.
Speaking to the gathering that comprised students, teachers and parents, the Chief Minister said that for any State or nation the youth is one of the biggest strengths as well as one of the biggest challenges.
“There’s no reason why in spite the challenges we may have as a State why we can’t come out on the top and change the mindset that we cannot be among the top states of the country, become one of the ‘Top Ten’ states in ten years and the process must start with key stakeholders and key groups – farmers, women, youth,” he said.
Sangma informed that Aspire was meant to unlock talents, accept oneself and build confidence with proper grooming and guidance.
“You may not see the results of the programme today, but ten years from now, these same youth who are here today, the kind of confidence they will have in moving forward in life, the kind of positivity, acceptability and respect they have for others and themselves is the kind of impact and transformation we will see. We will see a different sense of purpose, passion, confidence and positivity like never before. But we need to be persistent and work together,” he added.
A key highlight of the event today was an interactive session on stage between the Chief Minister and some of the students from schools that attended the event.
One of the questions that the students had for the Chief Minister was where and how he found the skills needed to be the leader he is today when, in his time as a young man perhaps, soft skills and leadership training were hard to come by.
To this, the Chief Minister replied, “There were opportunities to pick up the skills we needed, although not at a scale like Aspire’s. However, my experiences were my best teachers. Like any other person, I have gone through defeat and losses on both personal and professional fronts. Through it all, I realized the power of trust, respect and hard work”.
He further spoke about his late father, Purno A Sangma, former Chief Minister of Meghalaya, and how growing up with a leader such as him meant that there were always moments of learning even at casual dinner-table conversations.
To another query about the Government’s initiatives in helping safeguard and promote indigenous music which is lately regarded by many as a dying art form, the Chief Minister replied,
“There are programmes and interventions that promote local musicians which include indigenous artists. The Tri-Hills Ensemble concluded recently is one such instance”.
He further went on to add how each person has a role to play in safeguarding culture and tradition.
When asked what profession he would have found himself in if he didn’t become a politician, Sangma responded, “While I have been introduced to politics early on in life which played a huge role in me developing the passion and fascination for it, social development has always been close to my heart. I would have always been involved in development programmes for youth, women, farmers, entrepreneurs, if not as a politician, in some capacity or the other”.
