"Reality has to be perceived with an open mind and only after we have seen reality for what it is without tainting it with our old mindsets, can we know the problems with reality and solve them," Yunus said while addressing a reception organised by the Asiatic Society to celebrate his Nobel Prize win.

"We cannot break through with new concepts if we are still stuck with old mindsets. That is why the youth have to think big, think ambitiously and think with courage," Yunus added.

Recalling the obstacles he had to overcome on his way to develop Grameen Bank, Yunus said rigid and narrow knowledge structures based on Western and old ideas prevented Bangladeshi researchers and policymakers from thinking outside the box.

"You have to see things through new lenses and cast away the old ones so that you can see things that the old lenses prevented you from seeing," he said.

Yunus said an open mind is required for considering new factors about economics, society, culture and politics. "If something is not considered, it will not be solved. It can only be solved after the problem is considered at length," he said.

An Asiatic Society Fellow himself, Yunus also said socio-economic problems, such as begging, continue to be taken as "normal" and since it is not seen as a problem it would not be resolved.

He said innovative ideas need new and flexible laws in practice as the legal mould of outdated laws would force these cutting-edge projects to eventually fit old strictures.

Citing the case of his draft submitted long ago for a state-owned micro-credit bank, Yunus said it has been collecting dust because it required a separate banking law. He regretted that it still has not been accepted even after he, along with others, had drafted the outline of a regulatory body and its operations.

Asiatic Society President Prof Emajuddin Ahmed said Yunus has pulled off a rare victory in applying his economic theories successfully into practice.

He hailed Yunus as Bangladesh's hope, inspiration and joy and thanked him for brightening the country's image when it was being dragged into darkness by crime and corruption.

The Asiatic Society also presented Yunus with a citation read out by Emajuddin. Prof Shajahan Mia also spoke at the reception.

Yunus will fly for Pakistan tomorrow at the invitation of Pakistan Prime Minister Shawkat Aziz, said a Grameen Bank press release.