'Social responsibility needs to be renewed'

By Our Staff Reporter

CHENNAI, JAN. 2. India should renew the ideal of social responsibility, Lord Swraj Paul, U.K.-based industrialist and officially-designated Ambassador of British Business, has said.

``Social responsibility was part of our history. It is a part we need to renew today'', he said, in his lecture on ``Indian values in the 21st century'' at a function organised here by the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and The Hindu group of publications.

Stating that society had an obligation to look after those who could not take care of themselves, he, however, said that this did not mean the creation of a welfare state. ``We have to develop conditions that will enable each individual to make the most of his or her potential and then allow them to grow with the minimum of interference.'' Many countries were now engaging themselves with this kind of quest. ``In Britain, the Prime Minister, Mr. Tony Blair, terms it the Third Way - a new path that we are trying to evolve for modern society.''

Giving a historical perspective of the importance attached by India to look beyond self-aggrandisement or acquisition of wealth, Lord Paul said the relationship between wealth and responsibility had been examined throughout history and today's India combined a mix of modern business ideas and traditional perceptions. ``Wealth can give you a better life, but can it make you a better person'', he asked, adding that he acknowledged the intellectual challenge in the creation of wealth but, at the same time, he was conscious of the limits of its value.

``There are some people who are looked upon as being wealthy but who are, in effect, not rich at all. This is because they believe that wealth is a trust and so, the money that they generate is constantly re-invested. This re-investment is what benefits society.''

Pointing out that the present global situation gave a new urgency to questions regarding the co-existence of tradition and modernity, and the relationship between an individual and society, Lord Paul said while far too many people lived in circumstances barely fit for human existence, far too many others were indifferent to this fact. There were two ways of overcoming the situation. One was to try to do so by force but revolutions in the 20th century did not deliver. The alternative was evolutionary process, which was not new to India. ``Our greatest thinkers have urged that the best change is that which comes from change of heart. We may not have practised this very well - few countries have - but we have to try and keep trying.''

As India was more fortunate than the rest as it had the ``philosophic tools'' of ahimsa and satyagraha, Lord Paul said the freedom struggle proved that ``we can do great things through commitment and without violence.'' The world had taken this message and used it on the streets of Seattle and Prague, although some of the demonstrators were not entirely peaceful.

Emphasising that India was called again to make such an effort, he said some of the country's spiritual batteries, particularly those concerned with moral values, had run down in 50 years. ``It is now our duty to promote a moral revival.''

The former President, Mr. R. Venkataraman, who recently took over as the president (worldwide) of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, described Lord Paul as a role-model for young entrepreneurs and as one who supported noble causes and strove for the betterment of the country of his adoption. Mr. Venkataraman released special issues of the Bhavan's journal including the one on the late C.Subramaniam, and handed over the first copy each of them to the industrialist.

The Editor of Frontline, Mr. N. Ram, introducing the chief guest, said Lord Paul set an example to others by practising high values in business, personal life, and in public life.

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