"India Showing Mirror To World Today": Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla

When India adopted parliamentary democracy post independence many countries doubted the country's potential, but today it is showing the mirror to the world, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has said.

Presenting Lions Club International's 'Roar to Restore' SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) awards to 20 individuals and organisations here on Friday, Om Birla also said India will lead the world in every field in the coming days.

"The coming time belongs to India, whether it is economic, social, political or democratic. There is a discussion of India's SDG everywhere. We had a long discussion on the platform of Parliament to achieve the goals of SDGs and how can we contribute to achieving the SDG goal," he said.

Lions Club International said in a statement that these awards seek to acknowledge and recognise the efforts and contributions of those who made a difference by their efforts and contributions, flipping the script on climate change, gender balance and women empowerment, health and wellness and laying the foundations for a more sustainable and equitable future for all.

"When India adopted parliamentary democracy after independence, many countries felt that with such a large population and geography, the country with this situation may not be able to do anything but today India is showing the mirror to the world," Mr Birla said at the event.

"Our strength has increased due to the new thinking of the youth. Today the youth is doing exceptionally well in every field. India's intellectual capacity has also increased. I am happy that in the coming days, India will lead in every field in the whole world," he added.

He also commended Lions Club's efforts towards achieving the SDG goals and said the club is working dedicatedly across the country.

"With positive changes, we have achieved many goals from the round table discussion on SDG goals that took place today. Apart from the people of the corporate world, the government is also working to bring about a change in the society regarding the four SDG goals," the Lok Sabha speaker said.

Speaking at the same event, BJP's Lok Sabha MP Manoj Tiwari said the discussions on SDGs are timely, and organisations such as Lions Club play an important role in initiatives like green energy and Swachh Bharat as well.

He assured that the government would help Lions Clubs continue upholding their values and ethos in service to society.

AP Singh, International Third Vice President, Lions Clubs International, said, "When the UN (United Nations) first introduced the Millennium Development Goals in 2008, Lions International signed an MoU to support the goals. Those goals have evolved through time into the Sustainable Development Goals, which are akin to the agenda of a good citizen, the agenda that a good government should have, and the agenda of every person to better their lives and make them worth living."

Lions International has more than 14 lakh members in over 48,000 clubs across 200 countries, including 2.8 lakh members across 8,500 clubs in India.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)