New Delhi: India needs leaders who can help meet ever-increasing rising expectations of people and "quixotic heroism" cannot lead this nation, former president Pranab Mukherjee said Monday. "Quixotic heroism cannot lead this nation. India needs leaders who can help them meet the nation's ever rising expectations. The country still has a long way to go before it is completely rid of poverty," Mukherjee said while addressing corporates at AIMA Managing India Awards.

He also expressed concern over the estimate that 1 per cent of Indians hold over 60 per cent of the country's total wealth and called on corporates to help bring people out of poverty. "The situation become all the worrisome if one looks at figure that more than 60 per cent wealth is held by just 1 per cent India's population. While such figure are definite burden on our national conscience, they also indicate that our growth needs to more inclusive then equitable. The one who are left behind drag others in the developmental narratives," Mukherjee said. According to the IMF, India is the world's seventh largest economy of USD 2.69 trillion size. According to a UN report, India's GDP growth is expected to accelerate to 7.6 per cent in 2019-20 from estimated 7.4 per cent in the fiscal ending March 2019, he said.