National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Friday (May 24) underlined that India's power has grown immensely in the last 10 years and noted that the country would have progressed at a much faster pace if its borders had been more secure, defined and not in "adversarial dispossession". Delivering the Rustamji Memorial Lecture organised by the Border Security Force (BSF) on its 21st investiture ceremony, Doval said India's economic progress would have been much faster if "we had more secure borders".
Ajit Doval's message for security forces
"In the foreseeable future, I don't think our borders are going to be as secure as we will require for our fast economic growth. So, the responsibility on border guarding forces has become very, very heavy. They have got to remain on alert 24X7 in perpetuity. They have got to see that our national interests and country are protected," he said.
Doval said that the borders are important as that is the limit which "defines our sovereignty".
"Jameen par jo kabja hai wo apna hai, baki to sab adalat aur kachehri ka kaam hai, usse farak nahi padta (The land which is in our possession is ours, the rest is the matter of courts and that is immaterial)," Doval said.
Government paid very high attention to border security: Ajit Doval
The NSA highlighted that the Narendra Modi-led Centre has paid very, very high attention to border security during the last 10 years, a period when “our comprehensive national power has grown immensely”. He said that India is undergoing a change at a very fast pace and in the next 10 years the country will be a USD 10 trillion economy and the third largest economy, which he described as a major achievement.
India will be hub of high-tech AI: Ajit Doval
Doval said that in the coming years, India will have one of the largest workforces and be a hub of high-technology artificial intelligence, semiconductors, quantum computing and various other areas of defence and security manufacturing.
“The country, which was an importer of arms, exported USD 2.5 billion worth of arms until March 31, emerging as a big exporter because of the government's policy of self-reliance and Atmanirbhar Bharat,” Doval said. In this changing India, prosperity guarantees security to some extent and increases vulnerability in much larger areas, he said.
"All these are ingredients of national power or what the Chinese call comprehensive national power. Your economy, your geographical expanse, your geo-strategic positioning, defence forces, technological achievements, and India's comprehensive national power will be very high," he said.
(With PTI inputs)
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