Post-2015 agenda must contribute to social development: India

UNITED NATIONS: As the international community embarks to adopt the post-2015 development agenda, India has stressed that the ambitious goal must contribute in shaping equitable, just and growth-led sustainable social development.

"Social integration is critical to the goal of a stable, safe, harmonious, peaceful and just society and also for achieving poverty eradication and full employment and decent work for all," said Mayank Joshi, First Secretary in India's Permanent Mission to the UN.

Joshi said social integration should, however, not be construed as achieving uniformity.

"It needs to respect diversity and promote equal opportunity and participation of all in order to create a 'society for all'," he said in a UN General Assembly session on 'Rethinking and strengthening social development in the contemporary world.'

Joshi said: "Both targeted and universal approaches in national policies, are key to social development of vulnerable sections particularly, women, children, elder persons and persons with disabilities."

Voicing India's commitment to the objective of social development and social sustainability, Joshi said "the post-2015 development agenda should also contribute to the shaping of equitable, just and growth-led sustainable social development."

He said there is need to mainstream sustainable development strategies focusing on readiness to face crisis situations in areas of health, economy, food and energy, and in climate change, natural disasters and armed conflicts.

This preparedness would, however, demand increased investment in human capacity, resource mobilisation, transition to a green economy and infusion of knowledge and new technology in implementation, he said.

Joshi noted that reducing poverty is the key element for India's strategy for inclusive growth.

He highlighted several programmes initiated by the Indian government in the areas of housing and shelter, health insurance, employment generation and family planning, which are focused on supporting families and households.

He said such programmes include the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the National Rural Livelihood Mission and the National Rural Health Mission as well as the newly-launched Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, which has made India today a nearly 100 per cent "banked" country.