The theme of the event is ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat - Vocal for Local – Moving towards Self-Reliant India.'

Apex industry body ASSOCHAM hosted a thought leadership event with world-renowned humanitarian and spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar for a dialogue at the inaugural session of the “Wisdom Series” organized by ASSOCHAM in association with ITC Sunfeast, on the theme of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat - Vocal for Local – Moving towards Self-Reliant India’.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and recognized industry leaders deliberated on how to promote local MSMEs and industries to achieve a self-reliant India in an engaging webinar.

Highlighting the role of Indian products and consumers in making Atmanirbhar Bharat a success, Gurudev Ravi Shankar opined that linking a product to its manufacturing province can be a possible exploration point to promote local products globally as this will aid in marketing and brand creation. He then went on to give examples of products like Mysore sandalwood, Muradabad brass business, Bangalore silk, Agra and Mathura’s petha and others. “In this manner, each province of our nation was linked to a product in the past. One reason for China to have progressed economically so well as per my understanding is that they too have tied a province to a product in a similar manner. This would be a great way of going about Atmanirbhar Bharat,” he said.

 “If Indian consumers do not support local products then it will be difficult to progress. We need to support our own products, buy local and think global. This is an idea we need to follow thoroughly.”, he added.

 Commenting on the current economic situation and how Atmanirbhar Bharat can play a role in recovery, he said, “I believe that we will come out of this pandemic situation much stronger though right now it may seem like a far-fetched reality. For this we need a strong mind and unshakable faith and we have to hold on to the hope that when the mind is strong, human beings can achieve anything.” He then went on to highlight the importance of exercising mental hygiene during this time through meditation and yoga to keep stress at bay. He further highlighted that positive thinking can also boost one’s immunity.

 “Doubts about the future can be draining not only our energy but also breaks down our immune system. It is not the time to lower our immunity. So positive thinking, meditation and anything that will help us to keep our mind strong and uplift our spirits must be done,” he said. He shared that as per A study done at @Yale found that by practicing Sudarshan Kriya, students reported improvements in six areas of well-being: depression, stress, mental health, mindfulness, positive affect, and social connectedness

  During the interaction, ASSOCHAM President, Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani highlighted how “the lockdown has pushed children especially students to embrace digital communication and has helped them remain connected.”

 Sharing his views, Anil Rajput, Chairman, ASSOCHAM FMCG Brand Promotion and Protection Council said, “We need a holistic India centric approach where all stakeholders think in unison to make India a global economic powerhouse. Prime Minister’s clarion call for Vocal for Local has already laid the foundation to build a strong self-reliant India of tomorrow, and it is now time for all of us to contribute meaningfully towards this vision.”

 Vineet Agarwal, Senior Vice President, ASSOCHAM emphasized that “for an Atmanirbhar Bharat, the country’s individuals and youth need to develop certain skills so that they can have a sense of pride in building a self-reliant India. He further added that self-reliance as a concept and practice is not going to be carried out for one or two years but will exist forever to build a stronger India.”

  Deepak Sood, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM expressed the potential of Atmanirbhar Bharat and how it can turn India into a global production centre, “Atmanirbhar Bharat for me is creating a highly capable inclusive globally competitive India that can plug into the global supply chain and become the most desired nation to be present in. India represents a talent pool and extensive national heritage that is waiting to be leveraged by Indian and global companies across the world.”

 Towards the end of the session, the ASSOCHAM official page was also launched on the newly released social media platform app, Elyments, created under Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign. Elyments, India’s own super app was launched and dedicated to the nation by the Honourable Vice President of India