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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 17 mocked the Congress' slogan of 'garibi hatao' (remove poverty) and said the poor feel empowered and confident when they actually get a pucca house and gas cylinders for their homes.
He also launched the second edition of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam at the Namo Ghar and said it strengthens the sentiment of 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'. He flagged off the Kashi Tamil Sangamam Express between Varanasi and Kanniyakumari.
Mr. Modi arrived in Varanasi, his parliamentary constituency, earlier in the day on a two-day visit to launch 37 projects worth over ₹19,000 crore.
On its way to Cutting Memorial School in the Nadesar area, where the Prime Minister interacted with schoolchildren and government scheme beneficiaries.
He addressed the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra at the school and emphasised the need to achieve hundred percent coverage of government schemes.
“The Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra (VBSY) is in a way my ‘kasauti’ (test) also,” Mr. Modi said. “It is my examination... whether whatever I had said and whatever I am doing, I want to hear from you and from the entire country if it has happened in the right proportion.” He said the beneficiaries of welfare schemes need not be running around government offices rather “the government must reach out to the beneficiaries.”
He said four crore families have been handed pucca homes under PMAY.
"Giving the slogan of 'garibi hatao' is one thing. But the poor now says that the day he got a gas cylinder stove in his house the difference between rich and poor ended. He says his confidence went up, when he started living in a pucca house. His children could stand with their friends in schools and colleges."
"The children felt humble living in a jhopadi (thatched houses)... there was no confidence. But on getting pucca houses, their life filled with self-confidence," Mr. Modi said.
He said that before Independence, people worked towards achieving freedom with great zeal and a similar approach is required to fulfil the resolve of a developed India. "Every Indian needs this mindset and resolve today."
He said the VBSY is a national endeavour and not a work of any political party, and people should directly participate in this. "The path of getting rid of all difficulties passes through the resolution of a Viksit Bharat." Later, the prime minister launched the Kashi Tamil Sangamam at the Namo Ghat. The Sangamam will be held from December 17 to 31 and will see the participation of 1,400 dignitaries from Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
It aims at rediscovering, reaffirming and celebrating the age-old links between Tamil Nadu and Kashi, two of the country's most important and ancient seats of learning. The first edition was a month-long event organised last year.
"The Kashi Tamil Sangamam is a continuous flow, which strengthens the feeling of 'Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat'," the Prime Minister said, while crediting Adi Shankaracharya, Ramanujacharya and other ancient philosophers with creating the idea of India as a nation.
"Saints like Adi Shankaracharya and Ramanujacharya united India. They awakened the feeling of national consciousness through their yatras. Coming from Tamil Nadu to Kashi means coming from one home of Mahadev to his other," he said.
The Prime Minister also launched multi-language and braille translations of Thirukkural, Manimekalai and other classic Tamil literature on the occasion.
Mr. Modi said that a large number of people, students and youth from Tamil Nadu are travelling to Kashi, Prayag, Ayodhya and other pilgrimage sites during the event. "A darshan of Lord Ram in Ayodhya, who established Rameshwaram along with Lord Mahadev, is a divine experience," he said.
Mr. Modi noted that lakhs of people including heads of mutts, students, artists, authors, craftsmen and professionals have become part of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam since its inception last year and it has become an effective platform for dialogue and exchange of ideas.
He expressed satisfaction on the joint initiative by the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and IIT to provide online support to thousands of students from Varanasi in Science and Mathematics under the Vidya Shakti Initiative.
These developments, the Prime Minister said, are proof of the emotional and creative bond between the people of Kashi and Tamil Nadu.
Mr. Modi acknowledged that India's diversity has been moulded in the spiritual consciousness as signified by Great Pandian King Parakram Pandian who had said that every water in India is Gangajal, and every geographical location Kashi.
Reflecting on the time when the centres of faith in northern India copped constant attack by foreign powers, Mr. Modi highlighted King Parakram Pandian's efforts to keep the heritage of Kashi alive with the construction of Tenkasi and Sivakasi temples.
Mr. Modi said that in other geographies, a nation has been defined in political terms whereas India, as a nation, is constructed out of spiritual beliefs.
The Prime Minister was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during the event.
Mr. Modi took a walk through of the stalls and visited the Viksit Bharat Yatra Van and a quiz event. He also interacted with beneficiaries of various government schemes and students.
On Monday, he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone projects related to roads, bridges, health, education, police welfare, smart city, urban development, railways, and airports.
