The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on assuming office as the President of Brazil.

The Prime Minister tweeted;

“Hearty congratulations to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on assuming office as the President of Brazil. I wish him a successful third term and look forward to working with him to strengthen India – Brazil Strategic Partnership.

The 108th Indian Science  Congress being inaugurated at Nagpur tomorrow by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will focus on sustainable development with inclusive involvement of all sections of society including women.

Stating this in a pre-conference briefing to the media, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology & Earth Sciences, Dr. Jitendra Singh   said that the focal theme of this year’s Science Congress has been very thoughtfully finalized as “Science & Technology for Sustainable Development with Women Empowerment”. He said, the Conference will deliberate on holistic growth, reviewed economies and sustainable goals, while at the same time address the possible obstacles to the growth of women in science & technology.

The Minister said,  a unique hallmark of the Indian Science Congress this year would be “Children Science Congress” being organized to provide opportunity to children to  use their scientific temperament and knowledge and to realize their creativity through scientific experiment.

Dr Jitendra Singh also pointed to a new event being added to this year’s Science Congress in the form of what has been titled as “Tribal Science Congress”. This will seek to showcase the empowerment of tribal women and also provide a platform for display of indigenous accent knowledge system and practice.

The Plenary Sessions, the Minister informed, will feature Nobel Laureates, leading Indian and foreign researchers, experts and technocrats from a wide variety of fields, including space, defense, IT and medical research. The technical sessions will showcase path-breaking and applied research in Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Animal, Veterinary and Fishery Sciences, Anthropological and Behavioural Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Earth System Sciences, Engineering Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Information and Communication Science & Technology, Material Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Medical Sciences, New Biology, Physical Sciences, and Plant Sciences, he added.

 Dr Jitendra Singh also referred to a special attraction of the event, the mega expo “Pride of India” which will display the strengths and achievements of Government, Corporate, PSUs, Academic and R&D Institutes, Innovators & Entrepreneurs from all across the country. Prominent developments, major achievements and the significant contributions largely of Indian Science and Technology to the society will be showcased in the exhibition.

Apart from these 14 sections, there will be a Women’s Science Congress, a Farmers’ Science Congress, a Children’s Science Congress, a Tribal Meet, a section on Science and Society and a Science Communicators’ Congress.

Among the top dignitaries who will grace the inaugural session are Governor of Maharashtra and Chancellor of Maharashtra Public Universities, Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Union Minister and Chairman of the Advisory Committee of RTMNU Centenary Celebrations, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology & Earth Sciences, Dr. Jitendra Singh and Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis.

Vice Chancellor of Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Dr. Subhash R. Chaudhari, and General President of Indian Science Congress Association (ISCA), Kolkata, Dr. (Mrs.) Vijay Laxmi Saxena will be prominently present.

Vigyan Jyot – Flame of Knowledge – was conceived on the lines of the Olympic flame. It is a movement dedicated to nurturing scientific temper in the society, especially the youth. The flame, installed at the University campus, will continue to be alight until the end of the 108th Indian Science Congress.

On mission mode, Indian Railways’ Freight loading for first nine months of this financial year 2022-23 crossed last year’s loading and earnings for the same period.

On cumulative basis from April – December 22, freight loading of 1109.38 MT achieved against last year loading of 1029.96 MT, an improvement of 8% over last year loading. Railways have earned Rs 120478 crore against Rs 104040 crore over last year which is an improvement of 16% as compared to the same period of last year.

During the month of December 22, Originating freight loading of 130.66 MT has been achieved against loading of 126.8 MT in Dec. 21, which is an improvement of 3 % over last year. Freight revenue of Rs. 14573 crore have been achieved against Rs 12914 crore freight earnings in December 21, thereby an improvement of 13% over last year.

Following the Mantra, “Hungry For Cargo”, IR has made sustained efforts to improve the ease of doing business as well as improve the service delivery at competitive prices which has resulted in new traffic coming to railways from both conventional and non conventional commodity streams. The customer centric approach and work of Business Development Units backed up by agile policy making helped Railways towards this landmark achievement.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has paid tributes to Sri Mannathu Padmanabhan on his birth anniversary. The Prime Minister also acknowledged his contributions to social reforms, rural development and India’s freedom movement.

The Prime Minister tweeted;

“Tributes to Sri Mannathu Padmanabhan on his birth anniversary. His contribution to social reform and his service motivate several people. He was also widely respected for his efforts to further rural development and made a great contribution to India’s freedom movement.”

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has expressed deep grief after the the passing away of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

The Prime Minister tweeted;

“Saddened by the passing away of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who devoted his entire life to the Church and the teachings of Lord Christ. He will be remembered for his rich service to society. My thoughts are with the millions around the world who grieve his passing.”

Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah today laid the foundation stone of the Central Detective Training Institute (CDTI) at Devanahalli in Karnataka and inaugurated the residential and administrative complexes of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). The residential complexes of ITBP inaugurated by Shri Amit Shah include Residential Quarters, Joint Building, Barracks for 120 Jawans, Staff Officers’ Mess and Officers’ Mess. On this occasion, Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri Basavaraj Bommai, Union Minister Shri Prahlad Joshi and many other dignitaries were present.

In his address, Shri Amit Shah said that with the laying of the foundation stone of the CDTI, a link has been initiated to make facilities for police forces more accessible. Shri Shah thanked Chief Minister Shri Basavaraj Bommai for providing suitable land for the BPR&D’s Central Intelligence Training Institute.

The Union Home Minister said that BPR&D strengthens the police institutions of the country, but its work was not being given due importance. He said that with the passage of time, societal thinking, its form, goals and path have changed and if police do not change accordingly, they can gradually become irrelevant. Shri Shah said that research is essential for police to adapt to the continuous changes in society, BPR&D is responsible for conducting this research for the police and Central Armed Forces.

The Union Home and Cooperation Minister said systemic and procedural reforms in police should be a continuous process, for which collaboration between institutions, seminars and exchange of best practices and challenges is necessary to make police forces the best. Shri Shah said this process is very important, as law and order is a State subject and with India’s cultural diversities, there are variations in criminal activities and different challenges are encountered. The police have been appropriately classified as a State subject, but over a period of time, difficult challenges like narcotics, fake notes, hawala business, organizations spreading frenzy, terrorism, infiltration in border States, problems related to the sea in coastal States have also been encountered by police forces across the country, and various measures have been taken to deal with them. Dialogue, seminars and cooperation through BPR&D is essential to maintain harmony among the forces. He said, it is a continuous process, but time has come to speed up the pace, as without it, we cannot prepare the Nation to rise up to challenges of law and order.

Shri Shah said the country will also have to focus on challenges in metropolitan areas, and there is a need to change our strategy through research and practicing with results, as city policing is going to be more challenging in the near future. He said, CDTI would help in fulfilling all these objectives for the CAPFs as well as the police of neighboring States, which has been running since 1956. Shri Amit Shah said the centers built in Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ghaziabad and Rajasthan have made huge contributions and now the Government of India will work towards bringing equality among all these centers through coordination and support of BPR&D.

Shri Amit Shah said the CDTI will also serve the forensic needs of the neighboring States of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa and the UT of Daman-Diu. He said it is very important to have good law and order situation in the journey towards India’s development, and in the last 3 years under the auspices of BPR&D, the government has made changes to help improve research, the results of which are also now becoming visible. Shri Shah said under its charter, BPR&D has also started creating verticals in new areas added by Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India and Modus Operandi Bureau is also running under the aegis of BPR&D.

The Union Home Minister said that the government of India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has made efforts to equip personnel of security forces, especially border guarding forces, with latest technology, increase their housing satisfaction ratio and fulfill requirements of personnel and their families. As a continuation of these efforts, today the Foundation Stone of CDTI is being laid and various residential buildings of ITBP are being inaugurated. He said, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, a lot of work is being undertaken for the construction of residences and administrative blocks to ensure the convenience of the CAPF Jawans staying in the barracks and guarding the border; and this work will continue unabated.

Shri Shah said the ITBP works in the most difficult area amongst all CAPFs. We cannot even imagine their morale and great patriotism to protect the country’s borders in – 42 (minus 42) degrees temperature. He said when ITBP personnel patrol the border, the country is sure that no one can dare to encroach on even an inch of India’s land. Shri Amit Shah said that since its inception, ITBP has performed exceedingly well in tough geographical conditions, harsh environmental conditions and difficult terrain. ITBP has also played a crucial role in fighting against Left Wing Extremism. That’s why, be it Arunachal, Kashmir, Ladakh, ITBP Jawans are called ‘Himveer’ by the people, a title bigger than any award as it has been bestowed by the people.

The Union Home and Cooperation Minister said through BPR&D, we are moving forward in the direction of identification of the problems, analysis of the suggestions on research, policy change on the basis of analysis, implementation of the policy and ending the entire chain of review. We are going to derive huge benefit from this, and CDTI will work towards fulfilling the objective.

He said that the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has initiated e-Awas portal for CAPFs due to which housing satisfaction ratio has increased by about 9 percent and in last eight years, 31,000 houses have been constructed, more than 17,000 houses are under construction and in the in upcoming budget more than 15,000 houses will be approved, due to which the housing satisfaction ratio will go beyond 60 percent which is a matter of great satisfaction.

Shri Shah said that to further strengthen the health facilities provided to Jawans and their families, about 35 lakh cards have been distributed under the Ayushman CAPF scheme. Now, just by swiping the card, one can go for treatment without waiting for any approval or document. With the addition of more hospitals, healthcare services worth over Rs. 20-crore have been availed by CAPF personnel and their families in a span of less than a year.

The Union Minister said that a duty roster is also being prepared to ensure that Jawans patrolling the border get a chance to stay at the headquarters with their families for at least 100 days. He said the Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is dedicated and alert to the welfare of CAPF personnel.

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated “Incubation Centre” at National Research Development Corporation (NRDC), Delhi to provide multi-prong support to StartUps.

Chairman and Managing Director NRDC,Commodore(Retd) Amit Rastogi and his entire team welcomed DrJitendra Singh and pointed out that he was the first ever Minister for Science and Technology who was visiting the NRDC headquarters at Delhi, since its inception in 1953.

Dr Jitendra Singh was glad to note that after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement of ‘StartUp India, Stand-up India” from the ramparts of the Red fort on 15^th August, 2015, NRDC had reoriented itself to become the only National level PSU, which is providing its services for taking the lab scale technologies developed by Public Funded Research Institutes (PFRI) to Industry.

Dr Jitendra Singh pointed out that the Corporation is providing support to start-ups through its various activities like IP Filing support to StartUps, Incubation Support for nurturing Start-Ups through its incubators at NRDC HQ, CSIR-NAL and CSIR-IMMT, Technology Development fund, Seed Funding to early stage start-up, Association with DPIIT for recognising start-ups and finally Association with IOCL for mentoring & monitoring of start-ups.

Dr Jitendra Singh urged the Team NRDC to take a wholesome approach to establish a National level facility which should provide one-stop solution to all the needs of the ever growing Start-Ups ecosystem of the country. He said, it must house facilities like TRL assessment, IP exchange, Design clinic, Model Incubation facility etc.In order to find World market for Indian Technologies, NRDC should aim to provide technology transfer services through hub and spoke model, specially to African and Asian Countries, the Minister added.

Dr Jitendra Singh said, as PSU under DSIR, NRDC is focussed on securing and translating the IPR through various value addition activities carried out like Technology Evaluation, Basic Engineering, Market Surveys, etc. and providing its bit to make India truly “Atmanirbhar”.

Commodore(Retd) Amit Rastogi, in his presentation before the Minister informed that Uniphore, an Indian Unicorn and The Leader in Conversational AI & Automation received Funding of Rs 30 lakh and Technology support from NRDC in 2008. Shri Rastogi promised to DrJitendra Singh that he and his team will strive hard to make the Corporation one of the world’s best and leading organization for Technology Transfer.

NRDC has created the facilities for incubating start-ups and is also promoting beneficial schemes to provide support in terms of funding, mentoring, IP assistance and other allied services to the Start-ups. In the last one year, the Corporation has established three Incubation Centres and one Outreach Centre. Another Outreach Centre is planned for inauguration in January 2023 at Guwahati to promote start-ups in North East. 10,000 Start-ups have received support in respect of IP filing, Incubation and start-up registration so far.

NRDC has further forayed into the domain of defence and nuclear technologies for civilian application. With an aim to support Made-in-India, NRDC has established Foreign collaboration with USPTO, AARDO etc. for exploring world market for Indian Technologies. Further, NRDC is proving to be a catalyst between R&D Institute & Industry and has signed MoU with 220 R&D Institute & Universities in last five years. NRDC has also proved its credentials and its Vizag unit was awarded “Best Technology” and “Innovation Support Centre” in 2021. With an aim to set-up National Technology Transfer Organization to provide one stop shop to StartUps and with setting up of International Marketing Division, NRDC is poised for grand scale up in future.

With an objective of making quality generic medicines available at affordable prices to all, Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) was launched by the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Government of India in November, 2008. The target of opening 3000 Kendras was achieved in December 2017. Further, a revised target of total 6000 outlets was also achieved in March, 2020. In this journey, the number of Kendras have now increased to 9000 from 8610 in the last financial year. Hence, the Government has deepened the reach of PMBJP with more than 9000 stores covering 743 out of 766 districts across the country. The Government has set a target to increase the number of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras (PMBJKs) to 10,000 by March 2024. The product basket of PMBJP comprises 1759 medicines and 280 surgical devices covering all major therapeutic groups such as Cardiovascular, Anti-cancers, Anit-diabetics, Anti-infectives, Anti-allergic, Gastro-intestinal medicines, Nutraceuticals, etc.  In addition to this, various nutraceutical products like Protein Powder, Malt-based Food Supplements, etc. and some AYUSH products like Ayuraksha Kit, Balraksha Kit and Ayush-64 tablet as Immunity boosters have been added in the product basket of the Pariyojana.

Medicines available under PMBJP are priced 50%-90% less than that of branded medicines. In the financial year 2021-22, sale of Rs. 893.56 Crore has been done, which has led to savings of about Rs. 5300 Crore to the citizens as compared to the branded medicines. In the current financial year i.e. 2022-23, PMBI has made sales of Rs. 758.69 Crore till 30.11.2022 which has led to savings of approximately Rs. 4500 Cr. to the citizens. Overall sales have seen a phenomenal growth which shows wider acceptance of Jan Aushadhi.

This scheme is providing a good source of self-employment with sustainable and regular earnings. Under PMBJP, an incentive of Rs. 5.00 lakh is provided to the Janaushadhi Kendras as a financial assistance and one-time additional incentive of Rs. 2.00 lakh (as reimbursement for IT and Infra expenditure) is being provided to Janaushadhi Kendras opened in North-Eastern states, Himalayan areas, Island territories and backward areas mentioned as aspirational district by NITI Ayog or if opened by women entrepreneur, Ex-serviceman, Divyang, SC & ST.

Jan Aushadhi Suvidha Sanitary Napkins are sold at Rs. 1/- per pad through these 9000 PMBJP kendras across the country. Since inception till 30.11.2022, 31.40 crore Janaushadhi Suvidha Sanitary pads have been sold at Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras, across the country. There are four warehouses at Gurugram, Chennai, Guwahati and Surat. These are backed by SAP based inventory management system to facilitate uninterrupted supply and faster delivery to remote and rural areas.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi flagged off the Vande Bharat Express, connecting Howrah to New Jalpaiguri via video conferencing today. The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Joka-Taratala Stretch of the Joka-Esplanade Metro Project (Purple Line). He also dedicated four railway projects to the nation including Boinchi – Shaktigarh 3rd Line, Dankuni – Chandanpur 4th Line Project, Nimtita – New Farakka Double Line and Ambari Falakata – New Maynaguri – Gumanihat Doubling Project. The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of the New Jalpaiguri Railway Station.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister apologised for not being physically present today, as for him, this is the day to bow to the land of Bengal as the history of the freedom struggle is infused in every particle of Bengal. “Land from where the call of Vande Matram originated, saw the flagging off of Vande Bharat today”, the Prime Minister said. The Prime Minister recalled that on Dec 30, 1943, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose hoisted the Tricolour in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and set the wheels in motion for the independence of India. On the 75th year anniversary of this historic day, the Prime Minister informed that he got the opportunity to visit Andaman to name an island in honour of Netaji. He further added that India had taken a resolve to start 475 Vande Bharat trains during the celebrations of the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and the train being flagged off today from Howrah to New Jalpaiguri is one of them. Mentioning the multiple projects whose foundation stones are being laid and inaugurated today, the Prime Minister said that the government is spending approximately 5000 crores for the completion of these projects.

The Prime Minister also informed that he will get the opportunity to dedicate many projects pertaining to the cleanliness of the Ganga and drinking water to West Bengal later in the day. He informed that more than 25 sewage projects have been approved in West Bengal under the Namami Gange Scheme. Out of which 11 projects are already complete and seven are being completed today. Work on 5 new schemes with an outlay of Rs 1500 crore is starting today. The Prime Minister mentioned one of the key projects i.e. Adi Ganga project for cleaning of which infrastructure worth 600 Cr rupees is being established. The Prime Minister said that along with cleaning rivers, the central government has focussed on prevention which revolves around creating a large number of modern sewage treatment plants. This is being done keeping in mind the requirements of the next 10-15 years.

The Prime Minister linked reforms and development of Indian Railways with the development of the country. That is why, he said, the central government is making record investments in the modern railway infrastructure. A nationwide campaign is going on to transform the Indian Railway, he said. He listed modern trains like Vande Bharat, Tejas Hum Safar and VistaDome coaches and the modernisation of Railway Stations including New Jalpaiguri, doubling and electrification of Railway lines as examples of this modernization. He also mentioned eastern and Western dedicated freight corridors as projects that will bring revolutionary changes in the logistics sector. The Prime Minister highlighted strides made in the fields of Railway safety, cleanliness, coordination, capability, punctuality and facilities. The Prime Minister emphasised that in the last 8 years, Indian Railways worked on the foundation of modernity and the coming years will see Indian Railway embarking on a new journey of modernization. The Prime Minister informed that while 20 thousand route kilometre rail lines were electrified in the first 70 years of Independence, more than 32 thousand route kilometres have been electrified since 2014. The Prime Minister said that the Metro Rail system is an example of India’s speed and scale today. “Metro network which was less than 250 km before 2014 had the highest share in Delhi-NCR. In the last 7-8 years Metro has expanded to more than 2 dozen cities. Today Metro is running on an approximately 800 km long Metro track in different cities of the country. Work is going on Metro routes of more than 1000 km”, he informed.

Referring to the challenges posed to India in the yesteryears, the Prime Minister remarked that it had a very negative effect on the development of India. Throwing light on one of the key challenges, the Prime Minister highlighted the lack of coordination among various agencies involved in the infrastructural development of the nation. He also mentioned the lack of coordination among the various transport agencies and as a result, the Prime Minister continued, one government agency had no clue about the work being done by other agencies. “This had a direct impact on the honest taxpayers of the country”, he said. The Prime Minister remarked that when their hard-earned money is used in filling the pockets of the corrupt rather than the poor, it is natural to be dissatisfied. “The Government launched the PM Gati Shakti Plan to fill the gaps in the coordination of agencies”, Shri Modi remarked, “Be it different state governments, construction agencies or industry experts, everyone is coming together on the Gati Shakti Platform.” He further added that PM Gati Shakti is not only limited to conjoining the different mediums of transport in the country but also providing pace to the multimodal projects. The Prime Minister further added that the construction of new airports, waterways, ports and roads is being carried out to ensure seamless connectivity for the citizens.

“We must make correct use of the potential of the nation to move forward in the 21st century”, the Prime Minister remarked. Highlighting the waterways in the country, the Prime Minister recalled the time when waterways were used on a large scale for work, business and tourism in India but were later destroyed during the years of slavery. He also pointed out the lack of efforts by the previous governments in reviving the waterways in the country. “India is working toward boosting its Jal Shakti today”, Shri Modi said. He informed that more than 100 waterways are being developed today and work is taking place to introduce advanced cruise ships in the rivers while boosting business and tourism. The Prime Minister also highlighted the Ganga-Brahmaputra project that is being carried out between India and Bangladesh to establish waterway links between the two rivers. Referring to the cruise that is going to set sail on 13th January 2023 from Kashi to Dibrugarh via Bangladesh, the Prime Minister informed that the 3200 km long journey is the first-of-its-kind in the entire world and it will be a reflection of the growing cruise tourism in the country.

Highlighting the love for the land in the people of West Bengal, the Prime Minister remarked on the enthusiasm that they show in visiting the different places of cultural heritage in India and also learning from it. “The people of Bengal possess the spirit of Nation First, even in tourism”, he continued, “When connectivity in the county gets a boost, and the railway, waterway and highways are becoming more advanced, the result is Ease of Travel and the people of Bengal have also benefited from this”, Shri Modi remarked.

The Prime Minister concluded the address by reciting a few lines by Guru Rabindranath Tagore which translates to “The soil of my country, I bow my head to you”. The Prime Minister pointed out that in this Azadi ka Amrit Kaal, everyone must work together by deeming utmost priority to our motherland. “The entire world is looking at India with the eyes of hope and expectations. Every citizen of the country must dedicate oneself to the service of the nation”, the Prime Minister concluded.

Chief Minister of West Bengal, Ms Mamata Banerjee, Governor of West Bengal, Dr C V Ananda Bose, Union Minister for Railways in India, Shri Ashwini Vaisnav, Union Ministers of State, Shri John Barla, Dr Subhas Sarkar and Shri Nisith Parmanik and Member of Parliament, Shri Prasoon Banerjee were those present on occasion among others.

Background

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi flagged off the 7th Vande Bharat Express, connecting Howrah to New Jalpaiguri at the Howrah Railway Station. The ultra-modern Semi High-Speed Train is equipped with state-of-the-art passenger amenities. The train will stop at Malda Town, Barsoi and Kishanganj stations en route in both directions.

The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Joka-Taratala Stretch of the Joka-Esplanade Metro Project (Purple Line). The 6.5 km stretch having 6 stations namely Joka, Thakurpukur, Sakher Bazar, Behala Chowrasta, Behala Bazar and Taratala has been constructed at a cost of more than Rs 2475 Crore. Passengers of southern parts of Kolkata City like Sarsuna, Dakghar, Muchipara and South 24 Parganas will be immensely benefited from the inauguration of this project.

The Prime Minister also dedicated four railway projects to the nation. These include the Boinchi – Shaktigarh 3rd Line developed at a cost of Rs 405 crore; the Dankuni – Chandanpur 4th Line Project developed at a cost of Rs 565 crore; Nimtita – New Farakka Double Line developed at a cost of Rs 254 crore; and Ambari Falakata – New Maynaguri – Gumanihat Doubling Project developed at a cost of more than Rs 1080 crore. The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of the New Jalpaiguri Railway Station to be developed at the cost of more than Rs 335 crore.

Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah inaugurated Mega Dairy at Mandya in Karnataka today. Several dignitaries including Nirmalanandanatha Mahaswamiji, the 72nd Pontiff of Sri Adichunchanagiri Mahasamsthana Math, Mandya, Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri Basavaraj Bommai, former Prime Minister Shri HD Deve Gowda and Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Coal and Mines Shri Pralhad Joshi were present on the occasion.

Condoling the demise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother, Shri Amit Shah paid tributes to her and said that the whole country is standing with the Prime Minister in this hour of grief. The Union Home and Cooperation Minister said that since independence, the farmers of the country had demanded a Ministry of Cooperation separate from the Ministry of Agriculture. He said that he would like to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for paving the way for the development of farmers by forming a separate Ministry of Cooperation. Shri Shah said that from the inaugural platform of Mandya Mega Dairy, he wants to tell the cooperative workers across the country that it is the decision of the Government of India that there will be no injustice to the cooperatives.

The Union Cooperation Minister said that the mega dairy inaugurated today at a cost of Rs 260 crore would process 10 lakh liters of milk per day and the will have the capacity to increase it upto 14 lakh liters per day. He said that when 10 lakh liters of milk is processed, prosperity reaches the homes of lakhs of farmers. Shri Shah said that in Karnataka, the cooperative dairy is working very well. Today, there are 15,210 village level cooperative dairies in Karnataka, in which about 26.22 lakh farmers deliver their milk daily and through 16 district level dairies, Rs 28 crore is deposited into the accounts of 26 lakh farmers every day.

Shri Amit Shah said that around 66,000 kg milk used to be processed daily in Karnataka in 1975 while today over 82 lakh kg milk is processed daily and 80% of the total turnover goes to the farmer. The Union Cooperation Minister said that the White Revolution in Gujarat has changed the fortunes of the farmers and through Amul, 60,000 crore rupees is deposited into the bank accounts of about 36 lakh women annually. He said that he would like to assure all the farmer brothers and sisters of Karnataka that Amul and Nandini will work together towards establishing primary dairies in every village of Karnataka and in next three years there will not be a single village in Karnataka where primary dairy has not been established. Shri Amit Shah said that the government has decided that the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and the Ministry of Cooperation will establish a primary dairy in every panchayat of the country in the next three years and a complete action plan has been prepared in this regard. He said that with this, two lakh primary dairies will be established at the village level across the country in three years, through which India will emerge as a big exporter in the milk sector by connecting the farmers of the country with the White Revolution.

The Union Home and Cooperation Minister said that Karnataka Milk Federation will be provided with technical support, cooperative sector support and overall functioning support from Amul and all its requirements will be addressed  by the Ministry of Cooperation. He said that Gujarat and Karnataka together can work for the welfare of the milk producing farmers of the whole country. Union Cooperation Minister appreciated the Government of Karnataka under the leadership of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai for ensuring depositing Rs 1,250 crore directly to bank accounts of milk producing farmers through DBT at the rate of Rs 5 per liter during the year. Shri Amit Shah said that Government led by Shri Bommai is crediting Rs. 1,250 crore annually through DBT to the accounts of milk producing farmers and also to remove malnutrition among children through the Ksheer Bhagya scheme, milk is being provided to 65 lakh children in 51,000 government schools and 39 lakh children in 64,000 Anganwadis .Shri Amit Shah congratulated the Chairman of Mandya Milk Producers Committee for his efforts to increase the income of all the farmers of Mandya district through dairy.

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh said that the World today recognizes India as military power to be reckoned with, due to the Government’s pitching in for ‘Self-reliant India” which is based on ‘‘Prosperity through industry” preaching of Shri Narayan Guru of Sivgiri Mutt. He was addressing the congregation of saints and learned elders gathered at Sivagiri Mutt, Kerala to celebrate the Tirthdanam Mahotasav on 30th December, 2022. “His preaching of prosperity through industry is the basis of the Government of India’s resolution of “Self-reliant India”. Today India is one of the largest economies of the world because of its hard work and enterprise. Today India has become the top five economies of the world”,Said shri Rajnath  Singh and added that “It was the far-sightedness of Sree Narayana Guru that he ordered Sivagiri Math to spread consciousness among the common people on subjects like education, cleanliness etc. And with the grace of Guruji and the blessings of revered saints, our government has also focused its special attention on these subjects.”

Invoking the Soldier Saint concept, the Raksha Mantri pointed that as a Defence Minister he is securing the physical boundaries of the country on the strength of the bravery and valour of the soldiers, likewise the saintly soldiers are protecting the culture of the country. “If we are protecting the body of the country, then you are protecting the soul of this country. And a Nation can survive till eternity only when both its body and soul are safe. I congratulate you for this.”

Shri Rajnath Singh added that Self-reliance has been an intrinsic part of India’s culture. Shri Narayan Guruji spread this message of self-reliance in the public through his teachings, and today Sivagiri Mutt is also working to take it forward continuously. Guruji was not only in favor of modernity, but also maintaining a balance between India’s ancient culture and modernity, which is relevant even today. It has been corroborated by India becoming one of the largest economies of the world through hard work and enterprise, he said.

Paying his tribute to the sacred land of Kerala that has produced great saints, philosophers, and poets who not only ingrained high ideals and values in the heart of the common man, but also united the entire nation, the Raksha Mantri said that Acharya Shankara, born in a small village Kaladi, traveled all over India and culturally integrated the entire nation. It was unprecedented in itself. “The principle of oneness of the whole world as postulated by his philosophy of Advaitvaad, is still embedded in the soul of the country inspiring different sections of the society to remain united and equal. Sree Narayana Guru ji is undoubtedly one such name in the chain of enriching cultural unity”,  he said.

Discarding the criticism of Indian tradition, thinking and philosophy not being concerned with equality, liberty and fraternity, which is considered as Western concept, Shri Rajnath Singh said that the concept of human equality and fraternity has been prevalent in the ancient literature, tradition and thinking of India. Rather It is more comprehensive and inclusive than that of the western one. Whereas the West talks about equality, liberty and fraternity only among human beings, the Indian tradition, in the form of  ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ i.e. ‘Whole world is one family’ sees equality, fraternity and unity between human beings and animals, between animate and non-animate beings and in fact entire World and Universe . “And this is the reason why India was recognized as Vishwaguru in ancient times”, he said.

The Raksha Mantri further elaborated upon the equality and unity of world by quoting various texts and tenets of Ved, Upanishad, Gita and Ramayan. He apprised the gathering of the ‘Adaitvaad’ of Acharya Shankara which is a synonym for universal equality. He mentioned that Shri Narayan Guru gave the slogan of “freedom through education” during the freedom struggle. “It is also found in our ancient commentaries that knowledge liberates a man. Education leads to enlightenment, which leads to freedom.”

Sivagiri Mutt is a famous tourist pilgrimage place in Varkala town of Thiruvananthapuram district in Kerala. The Mutt also headquarters Sree Narayana Dharma Sangham, an organisation of Sree Narayan Guru’s disciples and followers. Sivagiri pilgrimage, known as Sivagiri Theerthadanam in Malayalam is another important festival celebrated in the Mutt.