‘Our concept of New India is that in place of VIP, more priority should be accorded to EPI’

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Mann Ki Baat

Prime Minister Shri Narendra on April 30 interacted with the people of the countru through his popular programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’. Addressing through his radio programme Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said “Before each episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat, ’suggestions pour in Aakashvani, on NarendraModiApp, come through on MyGov, by the phone and come by the means of recorded messages from every corner of the country and people of every age group, And sometimes when I take the time to view them, for me it becomes an extremely pleasant experience.” He added that in ‘New India’ more priority should be accorded to EPI.

Here are some important highlights of the address:

What are the kinds of suggestions, what are the kinds of complaints and what are the experiences of the people? It is an inherent human nature to advise others. While travelling in the train or the bus if someone coughs, the next person immediately advises a cure. To offer advice or suggest a solution, are part of our nature. In the beginning, when suggestions came in response to a certain episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ , one could discern words of advice, and you could read them too, so our team always felt that many people might have had this particular habit of proffering advice. But when we analyzed the suggestions minutely, I really became quite emotional.

Most of those who give suggestions or try to reach to me are those who are really doing something in their lives. They are making efforts and are engrossed as per their intellect, capacity, ability and circumstances so that something good must happen. And when these things came to my notice I felt that these suggestions are extraordinary. These are suggestions that have emerged out of a certain squeeze of life’s experiences. Some people also give suggestions thinking that if an idea has the potential to work then more people would listen to it if it is heard on a wider platform and hence many people can benefit. And therefore it is their natural desire that it gets a mention in ‘Mann Ki Baat’.

In the previous ‘Mann Ki Baat’, some people had suggested to me that food was being wasted; not only had I expressed my concern but mentioned it too. And upon my mention, there were mentions of many innovative ideas to save food from being wasted that are being put into practice employed in many corners of the country on NarendraModiApp and also on MyGov.
There used to be a time when climate change was a subject confined to the domain of the academic world, it used to be the topic for seminars, but today, we experience it in our everyday life and it also astounds us. Nature has also changed the rules of the game. The heat that we used to experience in months of May-June in our country is being felt in March-April this year. So, when I was taking suggestions for ‘Mann Ki Baat’, most of the suggestions offered related to what should be done to beat the heat during summer time. Most of the suggestions or practices to beat summer are not new but are prevalent for a long time, however it is very useful to remember them from time to time.

Shri Prashant Kumar Mishra, Shri T. S. Kartik and many such friends have expressed their concern about birds during the summer…..Some time back, Shri Mr. Jagat Bhai from Gujarat, had sent his book, ‘Save the Sparrows’ in which he not only expressed concern about the continuously declining number of sparrows, but also what steps he has taken in a mission mode for the conservation of the sparrow which is very nicely described in that book. In our country, we are traditionally imbued with a sense of symbiotic co-existence with animals, birds and nature yet it is necessary that collective efforts in this regard should be emphasized.

When I was Chief Minister of Gujarat, Syedna Sahib the religious leader of Dawoodi Bohra Community had completed his hundred years. He lived till 103 years. As part of the celebration of his 100th year the Bohra community society had launched a huge campaign to save the sparrow under the aegis of Burhani Foundation. I had the opportunity to inaugurate it. Nearly 52 thousand bird feeders were distributed in every nook and corner of the world. This effort also found a mention in the Guinness book of World Records.

Friends, this time around, the government of India has provided you with a great opportunity. The new generation is more or less freeing itself from the shackles of cash. It does not need cash. It has begun adopting digital currency. I know you do it, but have you ever wondered that you can earn using this very scheme? It is a scheme of the Government of India. You must be downloading the BHIM App and using it. But do refer it to others; make others join you in that.

The exit of the red beacon through a government decision is part of a system. But we have to make efforts to cleanse it out of our minds. If we collectively strive to do it with eternal vigilance, it surely can be flushed out. Our concept of New India precisely is that in place of VIP, more priority should be accorded to EPI. And when I’m saying EPI in place of VIP, the essence of my sentiment is clear – every person is important. Every person has his or her own importance, every person possesses a sagacious aura, Mahaatmya, in a unique manner. Let us warmly accept the importance of a hundred & twenty five crore countrymen, let us respectfully embrace the Mahaatmya, the divine greatness of a hundred & twenty five crore Indians and we’ll garner strength of immense magnitude. We have to do this together.

India has always advanced on the path of progress in the spirit of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas… inclusive development for all. And when we say Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, it is not limited to the confines of India. It applies to the global context too. And very specially to our neighbouring countries. May our neighbouring countries be with us in our journey, may they develop equally.