President Mukherjee farewell speech: 'Education is the alchemy that can take India to its next golden age'

President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday delivered his farewell speech on the last day in highest office in India. President Mukherjee took office on July 25, 2012, after leaving his post as Minister of Finance in the UPA II government. President Mukherjee did not contest for the second term and will be succeeded by President-elect Ram Nath Kovind. New President of India will take oath on Tuesday.

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Highlights of the farewell speech: 

#When I speak to you tomorrow, it will be as a citizen– a pilgrim like all of you in India’s onward march towards glory

#We extended our experience to a few villages in the neighbourhood 

#During my five years in Rashtrapati Bhavan, we tried to build a humane and happy township

#Social inclusion would ensure access to the fruits of progress to all 

#Eradication of poverty would provide a strong boost to happiness 

#We must empower the poorest of the poor and ensure that the fruits of our policies reach the last person in the line

#For us, creation of an inclusive society has to be an article of faith 

Suggested read | President Pranab Mukherjee farewell speech: 5 highlights

#Creative thinking, innovation and scientific temper have to be promoted in our institutions of higher learning

#Our universities should not be a place for rote-memorizing but an assembly of inquisitive minds

#A reordering of society is possible through the transformative power of education 

#As I had said on assuming Office of the President, education is the alchemy that can take India to its next golden age

#Only a non-violent society can ensure the participation of all sections of the people in the democratic process

#Power of non-violence has to be resurrected to build a compassionate and caring society

#Only a non-violent society can ensure the participation of all sections of the people in the democratic process

#We must free our public discourse from all forms of violence, physical as well as verbal

#The capacity for compassion and empathy is the true foundation of our civilization 

#Otherwise, a fundamental character of our thought process will wither away 

#But we cannot deny the essential prevalence of multiplicity of opinion 

#There are divergent strands in public discourse; we may argue, we may agree or we may not agree

#We derive our strength from tolerance; it has been part of our collective consciousness for centuries 

#The multiplicity in culture, faith and language is what makes India special 

#Plurality of our society has come about through assimilation of ideas over centuries

#The soul of India resides in pluralism and tolerance

#My temple has been the Parliament of India and my passion has been the service of the people of India

#For the past fifty years of my public life my sacred text has been the Constitution of India

#How successful I was in discharging my responsibilities will be judged, over time, by the critical lens of history

#Each day of these five years, I was conscious of my responsibility

#5 years ago, when I took the oath of office of President, I promised to preserve, protect & defend our Constitution

#For development to be real, the poorest of the land must feel that they are a part of the nation’s narrative

#I have received much more from the country than I have given; for that, I will remain ever indebted to people of India

#I am overwhelmed by a deep sense of gratitude for the people of India for the trust & confidence they reposed in me

#7:35 PM: 

#Pranab Mukherjee addressing the nation on the eve of demitting office as the 13th President of the Republic of India

#7:25 PM: 

For the past 50 years of my public life, my secret text has been the constitution of India, my temple has been the Parliament of India, my passion has been the service of the people: President Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan 

On Sunday, President Mukherjee expressed concern over the declining amount of time spent in lawmaking, saying Parliament should adequately scrutinise and debate laws before they are enacted.

“It is unfortunate that the parliamentary time devoted to legislation has been declining,” he said at a farewell function in Parliament attended by Vice President Hamid Ansari and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, besides others.

Mukherjee said with the heightened complexity of administration, legislation must be preceded by scrutiny and adequate discussion.

“Scrutiny in committees is no substitute to open discussion on the floor of the House. When the Parliament fails to discharge its lawmaking role or enacts laws without discussion, I feel it breaches the trust reposed in it by the people of this great country,” he said.

The outgoing president, who will demit office on Tuesday, said not a single part of the country of 3.3 million square kilometres of landmass and islands is unrepresented in the Parliament.

“543 persons from the 543 territorial constituencies of this country representing the people in Lok Sabha and 245 persons elected by 29 states and 7 union territories make laws, scrutinise orders of the executive and enforce accountability to protect the interests of the people. Each of these 788 voices is important,” he said.