NEW DELHI — It is the responsibility of the executive, legislature and the judiciary to work together to make the lives of common people better in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution, President Droupadi Murmu said on Tuesday.
Addressing a special event on the occasion of 75 years of the adoption of the Constitution, Murmu also said the fundamental duties of every citizen had been clearly defined in the country's founding document, which lay stress on protecting the nation's unity and integrity, promoting harmony and ensuring the dignity of women.
Constitutional ideals get strength from the active participation of the executive, legislature and the judiciary, as well as all citizens, she said.
"In accordance with the spirit of the Constitution, it is the responsibility of the executive, legislature, and the judiciary to work together to make the lives of common people better," she added.
The president said the aspirations of the people found expression in the many legislations enacted by Parliament and, during the past few years, the government took many steps for the development of all sections of society, especially the weaker ones.
"Such decisions have improved the lives of the people and are providing them new opportunities for development," she said.
Murmu said she was happy to note that, with the efforts of the Supreme Court, the country's judiciary was making efforts to make the judicial system more effective.
India's Constitution is a living and progressive document and the country's farsighted Constitution-makers provided for a system of adopting new ideas, according to the needs of the changing times, Murmu said.
"We have achieved many ambitious goals related to social justice and inclusive development through the Constitution," she said.
The fundamental duties of every citizen have been clearly mentioned in the Constitution, she said.
"Protecting the unity and integrity of India, promoting harmony in society, ensuring the dignity of women, protecting the environment, developing a scientific temper, safeguarding public property and taking the nation to higher levels of achievement are included among the fundamental duties of citizens," she added.
With a new approach, a new identity was achieved for India in the comity of nations and the Constitution-makers had given a directive for India to play an important role in promotion of international peace and security, the president said.
"Today, besides being a leading economy, our country is playing this role very well as the 'Vishwa-Bandhu'," she asserted.
The president said the Constitution was the strong foundation stone of India's democratic republic and ensured the country's collective and individual dignity.
On January 26, India will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the republic and such celebrations provide the country with opportunities to take stock of the journey so far and plan better for the journey ahead, the Murmu said.
"Such celebrations strengthen our unity and show that we are all together in our efforts to achieve the national goals," she noted.
Murmu said the Constitution, in one sense, was the outcome of nearly three years of deliberations by some of the greatest minds, but, in the true sense, it was the outcome of the long freedom struggle.
"The ideals of that incomparable national movement came to be enshrined in the Constitution. Those ideals have been captured succinctly in the Preamble to the Constitution. They are justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. These ideals have defined India since the ages. The ideals highlighted in the Preamble complement each other. Together, they create an environment in which every single citizen finds an opportunity to flourish, contribute to society, and help fellow citizens," she added.
In the constitutional journey of nearly three-quarters of a century, India succeeded to a remarkable extent in showing those capacities and developing those conventions, the president said.
She emphasised that the lessons learnt should be passed on to the next generations.
The celebrations of Samvidhan Divas every year since 2015 have helped increase awareness among the youth about India's founding document, Murmu highlighted.
She urged all citizens to inculcate the constitutional ideals in their conduct; follow the Fundamental Duties and move forward with dedication towards the national goal of building a Viksit Bharat by 2047.