My colleague in the Union Cabinet, Shri Amit Shah, Interpol President Shri Ahmed Naser Al-Raisi, Interpol Secretary General Shri Jurgen Stock, Director of CBI Shri S.K. Jaiswal, Distinguished Delegates and Participants.
I extend a warm welcome to everyone for the 90th INTERPOL General Assembly. It is great to have you here at a time that is significant for both India and the INTERPOL. India is celebrating 75 years of independence in 2022. It is a celebration of our people, culture and achievements. It is a time for looking back at where we came from. And also for looking ahead at where we want to go. The INTERPOL is also approaching a historic milestone. In 2023, INTERPOL will be celebrating 100 years of its founding. This is a good time to rejoice and reflect. Learn from setbacks, celebrate victories, and then, look to the future with hope.
The concept of INTERPOL finds a connect with various aspects of Indian philosophy. The motto of the INTERPOL is: connecting police for a safer world. Many of you may have heard of the Vedas as one of the world’s oldest scriptures. One of the verses in the Vedas says: It means, let noble thoughts come from all directions. This is a call for universal cooperation to make the world a better place. There is a unique global outlook in India’s soul. This is why: India is one of the top contributors in sending brave men and women to the United Nations Peacekeeping operations. Even before our own independence, we made sacrifices to make the world a better place. Thousands of Indians fought and died in the world wars. From climate targets to COVID vaccines, India has shown willingness to take the lead in any kind of crisis. And now, at a time when nations and societies are becoming inward-looking, India calls for more, not less, international cooperation. Global cooperation for local welfare – is our call.
The Indian police at the federal and state levels, cooperate to implement more than 900 national and around ten thousand state laws. Add to this, the diversity of India’s society. People from all the major religions of the world live here. There are hundreds of languages and dialects spoken. Massive festivals attract millions of devotees. For example, Kumbh Mela, the largest and longest spiritual mass gathering in the world, had 240 million pilgrims. With all this, our police forces work while respecting the diversity and rights of the people promised by the Constitution. They not only protect the people but also serve our democracy. Take the scale of India’s free, fair and massive elections. Elections involve arrangements for around 900 million electors. This is close to the population of North and South American continents taken together. About 2.3 million police personnel are deployed to help with the elections. In upholding diversity and democracy, India is a case study for the world.
