Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Madhya Pradesh cabinet minister Prahlad Singh Patel participated in the 'India Rural Colloquy Seminar' organised at MANIT (Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology) in Bhopal on Thursday. He emphasised the need to consider how natural resources can be utilised for future generations.
The seminar, themed 'Flourishing Rural Madhya Pradesh: Strategies for Regenerative Growth and Prosperity,' was organised by Transform Rural India (TRI) at MANIT on August 1. Minister Patel spoke about the necessity of integrating digital technologies, improving financial access, and strengthening local institutions to revitalize the state's rural sector.
Addressing the program, Patel said, "Today, the time has come for us not to just receive but contribute to our nation and its development. We have to deliberate and think about how our natural resources can be utilised for us and for our future generations." On his social media account 'X', the minister wrote, "I attended the 'India Rural Colloquy Seminar' program organised by TRI Foundation at MANIT Bhopal and discussed topics like the development of rural areas of Madhya Pradesh, rural poverty and inequality, sustainable development through innovative and inclusive means, etc." State Minister of Child and Women Development Nirmala Bhuria said, "We are from rural areas and live in villages. It is the lure of cities and urban centres that takes many to these cities. Nonetheless, India is largely rural, and we as a nation and people are connected to our soil, our motherland. We have to develop the rural areas more to truly develop as a nation." Additionally, TRI Associate Director Aliva Das said that over 72 percent of the population in Madhya Pradesh lives in rural areas.
"Despite initial expectations of workforce migration to industries, a large population still resides in rural areas with limited access to human development services. With the relentless efforts of the State government around developing the rural spaces into places worthy of living and thriving, and the Government of India's efforts along with State efforts to shape the long-term dream of Panchayat Raj Institutions becoming the unit of convergence with dedicated resource availability," Das added.
