New Delhi, january 05: The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has called for sustained international cooperation for effectively dealing with the growth of extremist ideologies.
In his inaugural address to the conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth countries in New Delhi today, Dr. Singh asserted that this menace is threatening the civilized existence. He strongly advocated for devising ways and means to defeat proponents of such ideologies who resort to intimidation, terror and other manifestations and are challenging the vary basis of democratic traditions.
Dr. Singh stressed the need that the parliament should respond to the everyday concerns of the common man and it should be the forum to articulate and address issues of their concern. He noted that with rise of growing number of regional and sub-regional parties, they find greater resonance within the political structure. This, he said, has brought the role of Speaker into sharp focus. He said the rise of this phenomenon is not only a challenge for the governance but also for the conduct of Parliamentary democracy.The Prime Minister said, it is the duty of the presiding officers to ensure due representation is given to voices of all sections in the Parliament . Dr. Manmohan Singh said that democracy has strengthened Indian polity and institutions .There are more than one million women representatives who have been elected to the local bodies in India. He made it clear that if India is able to banish poverty in a generation, it will answer all the queries of whether democracy can sustain rapid development and growth.
Prime Minister urged the international community to address the crucial issue of climate change through collective and cooperative approach based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibility. He referred to the meeting of the heads of the government of Commonwealth at Port of Spain and asserted that the leaders agreed to implementthe Commonwealth Climate Change Action plan by contributing to the efforts of the member-states in transforming their economies.
In her welcome address, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha Mrs. Miera Kumar said that the conference has emerged as an effective forum for understanding Parliamentary democracy and the challenges to the presiding officers in running and instilling the faith in these institutions. AIR correspondent reports that more than 50 Speakers and the presidingofficers from the commonwealth states are participating in the conference . A commemorative stamp was released on the occasion. Earlier, an exhibition showcasing the evolution of Indian Parliamentary democracy was thrown open by Mrs. Miera Kumar.
–Agencies