I have always regarded nonalignment as a statement that India's policies - foreign policy - will be guided by what I describe as 'enlightened national interest.' That means we will make judgments on an independent basis with the sole concern being what is enlightened India's national interest.

Manmohan Singh

India happens to be a rich country inhabited by very poor people.

Manmohan Singh

rich-countries powerful country

No power on earth can stop an idea whose time has come.

Manmohan Singh

earth motivational ideas

Capitalism historically has been a very dynamic force, and behind that force is technical progress, innovation, new ideas, new products, new technologies, and new methods of managing teams.

Manmohan Singh

technology team ideas

No nation, no society, no community can hold its head high and claim to be part of the civilized world if it condones the practice of discriminating against one half of humanity represented by women.

Manmohan Singh

community humanity practice

I do believe that the future of civilization belongs to those who would lay emphasis on working together instead of talking about clash of civilizations.

Manmohan Singh

talking civilization believe

We need multiculturalism, respect for diversity, tolerance, respect for diverse faiths.

Manmohan Singh

tolerance diversity needs

The Indian economy grew at 5.5 percent, but if you look at the last 30 years - for example, 1960 to 1985 - the progress made by East Asian countries was phenomenal. In a single generation they had been able to transform the character of their economy. They were able to get rid of chronic poverty.

Manmohan Singh

character country years

Unity and secularism will be the motto of the government. We can't afford divisive polity in India.

Manmohan Singh

unity india government

What India needs most is a unified food law.

Manmohan Singh

india law needs

My top most priority is to deal with India's massive social and economic problems, so that chronic poverty, ignorance and disease can be conquered in a reasonably short period of time.

Manmohan Singh

priorities india ignorance

With the revolution in information technology, with the revolution in transport technologies, I think just geography has lost its all significance.

Manmohan Singh

information technology thinking

Nobody should be allowed to tinker with democracy. We will not discontinue the good works of the past government.

Manmohan Singh

democracy government past

Life is never free of contradictions

Manmohan Singh

motivation life-is motivational

The premature migration of very large numbers of people from rural areas to urban areas can give rise to a lot of strains to the urban infrastructure, which can also create problems of crime - law-and-order problems.

Manmohan Singh

law numbers order

The first and foremost priority is to finish the unfinished task which the founding fathers of India set out for us at the time of our independence: to get rid of chronic poverty, ignorance, and disease, which have afflicted millions and millions of our people.

Manmohan Singh

ignorance father people

Ethical and responsible behavior needs to become the cornerstone of corporate behavior

Manmohan Singh

ethical behavior needs

I do believe that India needs a lot more foreign direct investment than we've got, and we should have the ambition to move in the same league many other countries in our neighborhood are moving. We may not be able to reach where the Chinese are today, but there is no reason why we should not think big about the role of foreign direct investment, particularly in the areas relating to infrastructure, where our needs for investment are very large. We need new initiatives, management skills, and I do believe that direct foreign investment can play a very important role.

Manmohan Singh

believe country moving

We are a mixed economy. We will remain a mixed economy. The public and private sector will continue to play a very important role. The private sector in our country has very ample scope and I am confident that India's entrepreneurs have the capacity, and the will to rise to the occasion.

Manmohan Singh

entrepreneur play country

India is this great experiment of a billion people of such great diverse persuasions working together, seeking their salvation in the framework of a democracy. I believe it will have some lessons for all the multicultural societies.

Manmohan Singh

multicultural-society believe people

Yes, I think India's economy always has been a mixed economy, and by Western standards we are much more of a market economy than a public sector-driven economy.

Manmohan Singh

economy india thinking