NEW DELHI: Underscoring the impor-tance of tackling the serious issue of drug abuse among youth, PM Narendra Modi Wednesday suggested that efforts be made to develop an “institutional mechanism” to break departmental silos and foster greater inter-departmental coordination and convergence in youth-centric initiatives.He also pitched for establishing India as a “global sports hub” by hosting major international sporting events and emphasised the need to adopt an integrated approach for development of sports in the country. He further stressed the importance of promoting technology and fostering innovation through startups in sports sector.The PM made the remarks while chairing a high-level meeting with secretaries to review progress in rural development, agriculture, social welfare and allied sectors towards Viksit Bharat goals at his residence at Lok Kalyan Marg here. He said the dream to build a ‘Viksit Bharat’ should become a ‘Jan Andolan’ (people’s movement) and the youth should form the foundation of this vision.“The PM shared his suggestions and his vision for future course of action. The meeting was marked by comprehensive and productive discussions across sectors, focusing on effective implementation, greater convergence and accelerated progress towards the goals of Viksit Bharat,” said a statement from the PMO.During the meeting, attended by cabinet secretary, secretaries of key ministries as well as senior PMO officials, Modi highlighted that the widespread adoption of initiatives such as PM-KUSUM scheme by farmers can bring transformative changes to the agriculture sector and stressed the need for global mapping of skill requirements to ensure better alignment with international opportunities and future needs.PM-KUSUM scheme is one of the largest initiatives in the world to provide clean energy to more than 35 lakh farmers by solarising their agriculture pumps. The scheme also has direct employment generation potential.
