Manohar Lal Khattar said the challenge for India is to improve its world happiness ranking. (File)
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today urged people to observe Sundays as "no-criticism day" and said the challenge for India is to improve its world happiness ranking, as it stands 133rd among 156 nations.
Asserting that time has come for the youth to focus on what they can do for the country instead of what the country can do for them, he said it is a matter of grave concern that almost all South Asian countries are way ahead of India in the annual report published by a UN body.
At the inauguration of Raahgiri, the government's people-administration connect initiative in Kurukshetra district, Mr Khattar said, "What is surprising is that despite being one of the fastest growing economies of the world and having a life expectancy over 70 years, we are among the 25 unhappiest countries on the planet."
"Pakistan at 75, China at 86, Bhutan at 97, Bangladesh at 115 and Sri Lanka at 116 are way ahead of us. Among the 25 happiest countries in the world, Finland, Norway and Denmark are among the first three, US is eighteenth and Britain nineteenth," he said.
Six variables used to calculate a country's happiness index are income, healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom, trust and generosity.
The government is trying to create additional income and employment opportunities through its pro-people policies and programmes, the chief minister said, adding, "The freedom that people have here is like nowhere else in the world. Challenge before us is to address the issue of happiness directly and not as collateral to economic abundance."
"Time has come for the youth to complement economic growth and political freedom by making life choices like being health-conscious, socially responsible, trusting and generous," he said.
Sunday, in true sense, is a "FUN" day - F stands for forgiveness, U for untying oneself and N for no-criticism at least one day in a week, Mr Khattar said and called upon people to stay positive and shun negativity in life.
Events like Raahgiri are aimed at giving people recreational opportunities and celebrate togetherness.
The chief minister expressed happiness that starting from Gurugram a few years back, Raahgiri is being organised in 13 districts and will soon be held also in all other districts of the state.