While delivering the keynote address at the national launch ceremony of ‘Azadi Ke Amrit Mahotsav se Swarnim Bharat Ke Ore’, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi recalled the remarkable contribution of women in different epochs of Indian history.
Given below are some highlights of his speech during the said event.
India Venerated Women as Goddess
The Prime Minister remarked on the Indian tradition of veneration and the importance of women.
He said “when the world was in deep darkness and caught in the old thinking about women, then India used to worship women as Maatru Shakti and Goddess. We had women scholars like Gargi, Maitreyi, Anusuya, Arundhati, and Madalasa giving knowledge to society”.
Women in troubled Medieval times
He noted the contribution of remarkable women in different epochs of Indian history. In the troubled medieval times, the Prime Minister recalled, there were great women like Panna Dai and Mirabai in this country.
“And during the freedom struggle too, many women have sacrificed”, he said.
He added further, “From Kittur’s Rani Chennamma, Matangini Hazra, Rani Lakshmibai, Veerangana Jhalkari Bai to, in the social sphere, Ahilyabai Holkar and Savitribai Phule maintained India’s identity”.
Entry of Women in the Armed Forces
The Prime Minister listed developments like the entry of women in the armed forces, more maternity leaves, better political participation in the form of more voting and representation in the Council of Ministers as a mark of new confidence among women.
He expressed satisfaction that this movement is society-led and the gender ratio has improved in the country.
Initiatives of Brahma Kumaris
The Prime Minister also flagged off seven initiatives of Brahma Kumaris. Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said the program by Brahma Kumari Sanstha, in the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebration, exemplifies the feeling, spirit, and inspiration for a golden India.
The need to preserve Culture and Civilization
During the event, the Prime Minister urged everyone to keep our culture, our civilization, our values alive and to preserve and promote our spirituality and our diversity.
At the same time, he emphasized the need to continuously modernize the systems of technology, infrastructure, education, and health.
Personal and National Aspirations
He said that there is no difference between personal aspirations and successes on the one hand and national aspirations and successes on the other. The Prime Minister stressed that our progress lies in the progress of the nation.
“The nation exists from us, and we exist through the nation. This realization is becoming the biggest strength of us Indians in the making of a new India. Everything the country is doing today includes ‘Sabka Prayas’”, he said.
The new Guiding Motto of the Country
He added that ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas’ is becoming the guiding motto of the country.
Commenting on the innovative and progressive new thinking and new approach of the New India, the Prime Minister remarked that “today we are creating a system in which there is no place for discrimination, we are building a society that stands firmly on the foundation of equality and social justice”.
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Azadi ka Amrit Kaal
The Prime Minister noted that the time of “Amrit Kaal is not for dreaming while sleeping, but for fulfilling your resolutions awake. The coming 25 years are the period of utmost hard work, sacrifice, and ‘Tapasya’. This is a period of 25 years to get back what our society has lost in hundreds of years of slavery”.
The Prime Minister said that it needs to be admitted that in the 75 years after independence the evil of ignoring duties and not keeping them paramount has entered the national life.
Rights and Duties
He noted that during this period, we only spent time talking and fighting about rights. He stressed that talk of rights, to some extent, maybe correct, in some circumstances but forgetting one’s duties completely has played a major role in keeping India weak.
The Prime Minister urged everyone to “light a lamp in the heart of every citizen of the country – the lamp of duty. Together, we will take the country forward on the path of duty, then the evils prevailing in the society will also be removed and the country will reach new heights”.
Tendency to tarnish the Image of India
The Prime Minister regretted the tendency to tarnish the image of India, even at the international level.
“We cannot get away from this by saying that this is just politics. This is not politics, this is the question of our country. Today, when we are celebrating the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, it is also our responsibility that the world should know India properly”, he emphasized.
The Prime Minister concluded that such organizations which have an international presence, should convey the correct picture of India to the people of other countries and tell the truth about the rumors being spread about India.
He also appealed to the organizations like Brahma Kumaris to encourage people to come to India and know about the country.
Lok Sabha Speaker, Shri Om Birla, Governor of Rajasthan Shri Kalraj Mishra, Chief Minister of Rajasthan Shri Ashok Gehlot, Chief Minister Gujarat Shri Bhupendra Patel, Union Ministers Shri G. Kishan Reddy, Bhupender Yadav, Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal, Shri Parshottam Rupala, and Shri Kailash Choudhary were among those present on the occasion.
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