1. What will Leapfrog India
Surendra Kumar

2. For Digital India to succeed, there must be massive expansion of primary and higher level education.

3. India must spend more on innovation and R&D
India must spend more on innovation and R&D. We must promote science, technology and skill development.

4. Indian society must stop looking at the government to solve everything
Indian society must stop looking at the government to solve everything. The role of families, schools, colleges, universities , ethics, national pride in orderliness, discipline, civic sense cannot be overstated.

5. India cannot progress without inclusion, where society lives without fear, intimidation and discrimination.

6. Agriculture contribution to GDP is 18 % but it employs 60 % of the workforce.

7. Politics must attract honest, hard working, intelligent, socially conscious youth.

8. 400 million people in India live under less than 1 $ a day.

9. India should not hesitate to import talent from other countries when faced with a lack of skill or expertise.

10. Our challenge is to provide food, water, nutrition, sanitation housing, education and the appropriate infrastructure to 600 million people.

11. The real challenge is to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor, between the educated and the illiterate, between urban and rural.

12. The University model of the last hundred years will be obsolete
The University model of the last hundred years will be obsolete. Today, learning models are very different. We really need teachers to be mentors.

13. Today, to learn, you need three things – time, motivation and content.

14. We need innovation in industry, in judiciary, police, education, health and agriculture.

15. Technology developments in the last fifty years have changed our world completely.

16. The first thousand days in a child’s life are particularly important for brain development. This calls for a sharp call to nutrition amongst women.

17. Mahatma Gandhi said” I learnt from my illiterate mother that all rights to be deserved and preserved come from duty well done”

18. There is nothing for nothing any longer.

19. Every right gives rise to a corresponding duty is gaining increasing acceptance.

20. Tolerance recognises that there is more than one route to truth and salvation. A tolerant society protects the right to dissent, an essential feature of a genuine democracy.

21. There is an essential linkage between tolerance, human rights, democracy and peace.

22. Tolerance cannot be legislated
Tolerance cannot be legislated. We have to develop the capacity for tolerance by fostering an environment and culture of tolerance.

23. Science itself does not mean technology, technology does not mean innovation. We live in a knowledge economy and those who win are those who access knowledge, learning and make the most of it.

24. Silicon valley is a story of ideas, venture capitalists, industry, leadership, lawyers, academia.

25. Many in India do not recognise the importance of openness and teamwork
Many in India do not recognise the importance of openness and teamwork. Leadership is like leading an orchestra like a conductor.

26. ‘Character’ as a word is sorely left out of our vocabulary
‘Character’ as a word is sorely left out of our vocabulary. We don’t value it on the path of ‘progress’ and ‘modernisation’

27. There are more elected women in India alone than in any other country
There are more elected women in India alone than in any other country. This includes the panchayat elections.

28. In an aspirational India, at every echelon of society, there is a feeling of injustice at not getting a larger share of the economic cake.

29. India is a young country, 66 % of the population is under 35
India is a young country, 66 % of the population is under 35. They want action, not slogans, results, not bromides.

30. Young Indians are growing up in a paradoxical India.

31. There is widespread cynicism in the country today and that is worrisome.

32. Overburdened with angst, India is in danger of becoming an inward looking country.

33. The quality of leadership in India has gone down over the years in every sphere. One of the worst declines is the parliament itself.

34. We need to focus on the 3 Rs – Reputation, relationships and responsibility.