NAGPUR: Lauding the work of civil society organizations (CSOs), Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi, chief guest at the inaugural session of Civil 20 India (C20), on Monday said that being the voice of the voiceless, they have a major role to play on the world stage. The high-profile inaugural session saw a host of dignitaries on the dais including spiritual leader Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis among others. Satyarthi said, My respect for CSOs has gone up manifold as I have seen them work from close quarters. You are the voice of the voiceless, the face of the invisible people. You can question the government, and also give answers through solutions. Spiritual leader Amma said that humanity is facing many extraordinary challenges today. There are also numerous challenges on subtler levels, which we may be unable to perceive or understand. At this point, human beings need two qualities: Wisdom to recognize the problem, and the mental attitude and intelligence to correct it, she said. Fadnavis shared the unique aspects of Nagpur in detail while explaining to delegates things to explore around the city. We are also called orange city because of the abundance of the fruit here. Its also called Zero Mile because the trigonometric survey of milestones was started from here. Nagpur is the city where the architect of our Constitution Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar embraced Buddhism. The largest social organization in the world, RSS, started its first shakha here. Mahatma Gandhi stayed in the region for a long time and started Indias biggest freedom struggle movement here, said Fadnavis. He also talked about the contributions of Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj, Sant Gadge Baba and Baba Amte for the society. Hence, I can truly say that you are in the heart of India, said Fadnavis. The DyCM also lightened the mood while talking about Nagpurs status as the tiger capital of India. I hope you all go and visit some national parks and interact with the tiger, said Fadnavis, prompting laughter from the delegates. Well, we know that tiger is a gentleman, he added. Members of C20 Troika also expressed their views regarding the role of civil society. Troika consists of three countries, which includes the one which last hosted C20, then current host and the next one. This helps in a smooth handover process. Ahmed Maftuchan, Troika member C20 from Indonesia (past host) said, First of all I would like to congratulate all members for hosting such a good inception meeting of C20 at Nagpur. Civil society members are engaging with all development stakeholders here to produce innovative ideas, concrete recommendations and spirit of togetherness. Allesandro Nilo, Troika member of C20 from Brazil (future host) said, We as civil society members have to prove that the world can be a better place to live in. Through the C20, we are working on solutions for it. Vijay Nambiar, C20 India Sherpa said, Today the world is paying the price for neglecting the teachings of our elders: To live in harmony with nature and our environment. The steps being taken to tackle climate change have fallen consistently short, and much work needs to be done to ensure sustainability.

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Voice of Voiceless - Indiatimes.com