by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that only refraining from war cannot ensure peace. Instead, there is a need for “united universal cooperation” to combat terrorism, climate change and for economic development and social justice.
Modi made the remarks in his monthly radio programme “Mann Ki Baat”, ahead of November 11 – the day when World War I ended a hundred years ago.
Modi said India had no direct connection with the War but it was an important event because Indian soldiers fought bravely and sacrificed their lives.
“The world witnessed a dance of death and devastation during the World War I. Around one crore soldiers and almost the same number of civilians lost their lives. This made the whole world realise and understand the importance of peace.
“The definition of peace has changed in the last hundred years.
“Today, peace does not only mean ‘no war’. There is a need to work unitedly to address issues such as terrorism, climate change, economic development to social justice through universal cooperation and co-ordination. Development of the poorest of the poor is the real indicator of peace,” Modi said.
On climate change, the Prime Minister said people only have to look back at the glorious past and the rich traditions for remedial action and have to understand the lifestyle of the tribal communities who live in consonance and in close coordination with nature.
“The tribal community believes in very peaceful and harmonious co-existence but if somebody tries to harm and cause damage to their natural resources, they do not shy away from fighting for their rights,” he said.
Modi cited the example of Gurbachan Singh, a farmer from Punjab who during the marriage of his son, told the bride’s father to promise him not to burn stubble in their fields.
He mentioned about the farmers of Punjab’s Kallar Majra who are mixing the stubble with the soil by ploughing their fields rather than burning. “A small constructive step plays a vital role in creating a positive environment.”
Modi recalled Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s contribution in keeping India united and said the nation will pay him tributes on his birth anniversary on October 31 by inaugurating his world’s tallest skyscraping statue.
Lauding the performances of Indian sportspersons in the Asian Para Games and Summer Youth Olympics, he said the country was setting new records not just in the field of sports but also in “uncharted areas” and stressed on the “4S” — spirit, strength, skill and stamina — as key elements in the field of sports as the core foundation of the nation.
Recalling the successful organisation of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in 2017, Modi said India was hosting the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2018 in Bhubaneswar between November 28 and December 16.
Mentioning about ‘Self 4 Society’ portal which has been launched with a view to motivate employees of IT companies for social activities, Modi said their dedication and vigour can make every Indian feel proud.
The Prime Minister congratulated Sikkim for winning the prestigious Future Policy Gold Award, 2018 for encouraging the sustainable food system and said the northeast region has made grand progress in organic farming.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that information technology has replaced the ‘Inspector Raj’ under the Goods and Services Tax (GST), as he termed the first year of the indirect tax regime as a “victory of integrity, celebration of honesty and a symbol of cooperative federalism”.
In the 45th edition of his monthly radio address ‘Mann ki Baat’, he credited states with “successful” implementation of the ‘One nation, one tax’ reform, saying people of different ideologies have taken part in its 27 meetings but its decisions have been unanimous.
In his address, Modi took a veiled dig at the opposition while referring to his “greatest satisfaction” at seeing people transform their lives through the video bridge programmes in which he interacted with beneficiaries of government schemes.
“There are certain people in society, who find no solace till they do not express their frustrated views, their depressed views and seek ways to divide rather than unite. In such an environment, when the common man comes to you talking about emerging hope, new zeal and events that have taken place in his life, it is not to the government’s credit,” he said.
Modi also credited Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee with laying a strong foundation for country’s industrial development in his capacity as Independent India’s first Industry Minister.
The Prime Minister also invoked Sant Kabir and Guru Nanak to derive home the message of social harmony and brotherhood.
Pointing out that 2019 would mark the 550th Prakash Parv (birth anniversary) of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, Modi urged his followers to think about ways in which this historic occasion should be celebrated.
“Guru Nanak Dev wanted to end caste discrimination in society and to embrace entire mankind as one. He used to say that to serve the poor and the needy was to serve God,” he said.
Recalling the sacrifice made by freedom fighters at Jallianwala Bagh in 1919, he said: “We must also remember the everlasting message that this incident has imparted, that is, violence and cruelty can never solve any problem. It is peace and non-violence, renunciation and martyrdom that are triumphant in the end!”
On GST, Modi said that although it was estimated that in a country as vast as India, it would take five to seven years for the “world’s biggest tax reform” to get streamlined but it has stabilised in just a year, and under it Information Technology had replaced ‘Inspector Raj’ as everything from return-to-refund was being done online with little manual interference.
Modi said he had interacted with 40-50 lakh people, including farmers and beneficiaries of government schemes through his video bridge programmes, and that it imparted him with new strength.
He said an incident regarding a small girl from a remote village too can inspire the 125 crore people.
“With the help of technology, through the video bridge even a single moment spent with the beneficiaries was very enjoyable, very motivational and provided satisfaction to work more. There is a renewed joy in dedicating your life for the upliftment, and you’re left with renewed fervour and inspiration.”
Modi greeted doctors on Doctors Day on July 1 and recalled efforts of corporate professionals and IT engineeers in Bangalore in creating ‘Samridhi Trust’ through which they had doubled income of farmers.
Recalling India-Afghanistan cricket match in Bengaluru earlier this month, Modi said: “I will cherish the match for a special reason. The Indian team, while receiving the trophy, invited the Afghanistan team to pose together for photographs. This incident exemplifies the very spirit of sportsmanship.”
Referring to the International Yoga Day celebrations on June 21, Modi hoped more and more people will come forward to make the practice a part of their lives.
He said the event presented some of “the rarest of sights” as hundreds in the European Parliament in Brussels, in the UN headquarters in New York and on the Japanese naval warships practiced yoga ‘asanas’.
He said country’s soldiers performed yoga in submarines, snow-clad mountains and even in the air, some 15,000 feet above the ground.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Economy, Finance, Markets, News, Politics
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that each and every expense incurred by a farmer will be considered, including his labour, while fixing the minimum support price (MSP) at 1.5 times the input cost.
While addressing his monthly radio programme “Mann Ki Baat”, the Prime Minister said a major decision was taken in this year’s budget to ensure adequate returns to farmers when the government decided to give at least one-and-a-half times the input costs as MSP for the scheduled crops.
Modi said while calculating the MSP, the input cost to be cosidered will include the labour cost, expenditure on machines and animals-also including machine and animals on hire-cost of seeds, fertilizers, irrigation, land revenue, interest on working capital, rent of leased land and even the labour cost of the farmer and his family.
“Further to ensure adequate income to farmers, agriculture marketing reforms are being initiated in a big way. Efforts are being made to link village markets to wholesale market and global market,” he said.
The Prime Minister added that in order to ensure that farmers do not have to go far to sell their produce, 22,000 village haats are being upgraded to agricultural produce market committees (APMCs) and being integrated with e-NAM (National Agriculture Market) platform.
“Such a system is being evolved that farms can be connected to any market in the country,” Modi added.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Entrepreneurship, News, Politics, Startup Basics, Women Entrepreneur
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the country was moving from women development to women-led development and emphasised that the dream of New India was where women were empowered, strong and an equal partner in the nation’s overall development.
In his monthly radio address “Mann Ki Baat”, he also urged women to create self-help groups for the GOBAR DHAN initiative which may become a source of income for the rural population.
“The aim of GOBAR-Dhan scheme is to ensure cleanliness in villages and generating wealth and energy by converting cattle dung and solid agricultural waste into Compost and Bio Gas,” Modi said.
Speaking about International Womens’ Day on March 8, the Prime Minister said: “There are many programmes that are held in our country and the world. Today the country is moving forward from the path of women development to women-led development.”
Quoting Swami Vivekananda’s saying that the idea of a perfect womanhood was perfect independence, Modi said the dream of New India was where the women were empowered.
“Today, it is our duty to ensure the participation of women in every field of life, be it social or economic life, it is our fundamental duty. We are part of a tradition where men were identified due to women-Yashoda-Nandan, Kaushalya-Nandan, Gandhari-Putra, these were identities of a son.
“Today, woman power has shown inner fortitude and self-confidence, has made herself self-reliant. Not only has she advanced herself but has carried forward the country and society to newer heights.
“After all, our dream of ‘New India’ is the one where women are strong and empowered and are equal partners in the development of the country,” he said.
Referring to a suggestion from a listener, the Prime Minister urged countrymen to felicitate mothers and sisters who have completed 100 years on the occasion of International Women’s day.
“Can a programme of paying respect for such centenarians be held and can’t we reflect upon a life lived long?” he asked.
Hailing efforts of a group of women from Jharkhand who organised a hygiene campaign for an entire month and constructed 1.70 lakh toilets in just 20 days, Modi said they showed that women power was an integral component of the ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’.
He mentioned the current budget in which an emphasis has been laid on turning ‘waste to wealth’ and ‘waste to energy’ through bio-gas.
“A target has been set to use cattle dung, agricultural waste, kitchen waste to produce Bio gas based energy. Under the GOBAR-Dhan Scheme, our farmer brothers and sisters will be encouraged to consider dung and other waste not just as a waste but as a source of income.”
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : In a bid to empower Muslim women, the government has changed the law by permitting them to travel for the annual Haj pilgrimage without any male attendant, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday.
“I noticed that if a Muslim woman wanted to go for the Haj pilgrimage, they cannot go without a ‘Mahram’ (a male guardian),” Modi said in 2017’s last edition of his radio programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’.
“And when I enquired about it, I came to know that it was we who have have restricted them for going alone for the Haj. This practice is not followed in many of the Islamic countries,” he said.
Modi added that the Minority Affairs Ministry has removed this restriction and will now allow the Muslim women to travel to Haj without a male attendant.
“Till date, 1,300 women have applied to travel for the Haj without any Mahram,” the Prime Minister said, adding that “they should get equal opportunity as the men get”.
—IANS
