INDIA WILL DETERMINE DIRECTION OF COMING DECADES: PRESIDENT MURMU

President Droupadi Murmu on Monday said that deliberations on global issues to be held under India’s leadership will “determine the direction of the coming decades” Referring to the G-20 Group meeting the country is going to host the next year, Murmu in her maiden address said, “I am sure that the conclusions and policies that will emerge from this brainstorming in India will determine the direction of the coming decades.”

Murmu was administered oath of office as the 15th President of India at a ceremony in Parliament’s Central Hall. Murmu is the first tribal and second woman to hold the country’s highest constitutional office. Murmu also stated that the international community has high hopes from India in ensuring global economic stability, ease of supply chain and peace.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described Droupadi Murmu taking over as country’s President as a “watershed moment” for the country, especially for the poor, marginalised and downtrodden. “The entire nation watched with pride as Droupadi Murmu ji took oath as the President of India. Her assuming the Presidency is a watershed moment for India, especially for the poor, marginalised and downtrodden. I wish her the very best for a fruitful Presidential tenure,” PM Modi said in a tweet.

It may be recalled that India will hold the G-20 presidency from December 1, 2022 and will convene the G-20 leaders’ Summit next year for the first time. During its presidency of G20 or Group of Twenty, India will hold a number of G20 events at different levels across the country.

Born in a Santhali tribal family on 30 June 1958 in Uparbeda village coming under Mayurbhanj district in Odisha, she had her education from Bhubaneswar and went on to work first

as a junior assistant in the State Irrigation and Power Department from 1979 to 1983. After this short stint as a clerk, she became a teacher at Sri Aurobindo Integral Education Centre at Rairangpur till 1997.

Murmu commenced her journey in politics in 1997 by joining the BJP. She was first elected as the councillor of the Rairangpur Nagar Panchayat and then went on to become the chairperson of the same panchayat in 2000. Later, she also served as the national vice president of the BJP Scheduled Tribe Morcha.