Tagore’s thoughts on welfare remain equally relevant amid current global turmoil: Atiur Rahman

Rabindranath Tagore’s thoughts on welfare have remained equally relevant even in today’s world facing crisis after crisis, Professor Dr Atiur Rahman has said.

He said this on Monday, 18 July 2022 while delivering a special lecture titled “Rabindranath’s thoughts on welfare and contemporary social realities” at the Bichitra Bhawan of Rabindra Bharati University. Vice Chancellor of the University Professor Sabyasachi Basu Ray Chaudhury was present at the event, according to a press release.

Dr Rahman said the global economic system went through a tumultuous phase because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Just as it started to recover from that shock, a new wave of geopolitical and economic crises has hit the globe due to the Ukraine-Russia war. As a result, the world is now facing a deeper crisis.

Between the final years of the 19th century and the early years of the 20th century, when Tagore was thinking about welfare and was taking up multidimensional endeavours in alignment with those thoughts - the world was also going through multidimensional changes. At the crossroads of the two centuries and between the two World Wars - Tagore deeply analysed the higher standards of living in the Western world and the famine, inequality etc. in the East. Hence, his thoughts on welfare at that time remain equally relevant in today’s world, the eminent economist and former governor of Bangladesh Bank added.

Dr Atiur Rahman pointed out that the contemporary development thinkers and policymakers are pushing “leave no one behind” as the core principle of the SDGs. Tagore has also said that “Those you push behind will pull you back”. This means, Tagore’s thoughts on society and welfare were almost a century ahead of his time and remain relevant in solving the problems and challenges of today.

He added that Tagore used his deeper insight and took farsighted initiatives to develop all the aspects of life that touch the day-to-day living of the common people.

Dr Rahman further pointed out that Tagore got to understand the woes of the common people by witnessing their daily struggles. And that is why Tagore has remained equally relevant in contemporary development discourses.

He then went on to highlight that Bangabandhu was also inspired by Tagore’s thoughts and Bangabandhu’s development strategies were inclusive and focused on welfare of the people.

Professor Sabyasachi Basu, in his remarks as the chair of the session, praised Dr Rahman’s contribution in research related to Tagore’s thoughts on education and rural development.

Prior to the lecture session, Professor Basu gave Dr Rahman a tour of the university museum.