SubEditor : Maryam Sayyed
Mumbai | September 3 | Gurudutt Wakdekar
“The true meaning of freedom is to make the lives of people easier. Regardless of who is in power, the important issues faced by the public must be resolved. For this, the ideologies of Shahu, Phule, and Ambedkar must be carried forward in the land of Chhatrapati,” said Yashwantrao Chavan Center President Sharad Pawar in his keynote address. He was speaking at the state-wide one-day ‘Thought Process and Resolve’ conference organized by Yashwantrao Chavan Center, which brought together distinguished office bearers and activists of various social organizations working in different social and cultural fields, as well as writers, artists, and journalists.
He assured that the Chavan Center would continue to stand firmly behind the social organizations working to resolve the issues discussed in the seminar and to make the lives of the public easier.
Speaking on the new education policy, he further mentioned that closing schools and depriving the next generation of education is not acceptable. Expressing concern, he remarked that the increasing incidents of violence against women and girls are unbecoming of a state like Maharashtra. He also expressed his concern about the current atmosphere of intolerance prevailing in the state.
Supirya Sule, the Vice-President of Chavan Center and the conference convener, stated that Yashwantrao Chavan Center is an apolitical institution dedicated to resolving public issues without any political bias. She noted in her speech that the Chavan Center is committed to the development of every section of society, and similar conferences would be organized across all revenue divisions of the state. Maharashtra is a state that sets the direction for the nation, and for a strong democracy, social organizations must retain the right to protest on public issues. Healthcare, education, and security are key issues for the common people, and it is the government’s moral responsibility to safeguard them, she added.
The conference was attended by several prominent individuals, including Chavan Center General Secretary Hemant Takle, CEO Deepti Nakhale, and various social activists like Pratibha Shinde, Ulka Mahajan, Adv. Jaydev Gaikwad, Nitin Vaidya, Dr. Shyam Manav, Subhash Lomate, Suresh Khopade, Subhash Ware, Yunus Tambatkar, Madhav Bawge, Comrade Dhanaji Gurav, Sambhaji Bhagat, Brian Lobo, Avinash Patil, Surekha Dalvi, Prasad Kulkarni, Shrikant Shankar, and numerous social organization workers.
The attendees were welcomed and thanked by event manager Datta Balsaraf. The program was conducted by social activist Vikas Lawande.
