The nation is witnessing the celebration of the 70th Independence Day. One of the highlights of this from last 3 years is the much-awaited speech by the Prime minister of India,Sri Narendra Modi. Even today, the Prime Minister hoisted the national flag at the ramparts of Red Fort. The speech concentrated on the achievements of the government as also focused on the future development plans.
PM in his address threw light on the utilization of power and saving electricity by the use of LEDs. Modi also highlighted the fact that said laying of power transmission lines has increased to 50,000 km in a year from 30,000-35,000-km earlier. “Electricity has reached 10,000 villages out of 18,000 un-electrified villages. The LED bulb that was priced at Rs 350 each, is now being sold at Rs 50 each,” Modi said, he was also found mentioning that when 77 crore LED lights are used in the country, India can up to save 20 MW energy. He then gave emphasis on the mitigation of open-defecation and said that the government is working on bringing about a social change and over 70,000 villages are now free from open defecation. The next point of his speech was the ambitious Aadhaar scheme where the government has succeeded to connect more than 70 crore Indians through Aadhaar and social security schemes. It is an important point to note that government has given more than 4 crore connections in the last 60 weeks. He didn’t forget to mention that the construction of rural roads has increased to a 100km per day from 75km per day before.
The electronic reforms that the government has brought were also a part of his speech, he said, “Today, getting a passport takes only couple weeks, earlier it used to take months. There were a tedious process and one needed strong references. We have changed this. Now one can avail passport in a week, have eased processes.”
He again mentioned the corruption free governance of his administration and said, “There was a time when the government was shrouded by allegations but now the government is surrounded by expectations.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his government has ensured inflation rates do not cross six per cent and that the Reserve Bank of India is doing its best to control price rise.
On the farmer crisis, PM Modi said: “If farmers in the country got adequate water, they can turn ‘soil’ into ‘gold’. That’s why my government has given importance to save water. We have given impetus to ‘per drop, more crop’ initiative. Sowing of pulses has increased 1.5 times this year, it will help solve the problem of demand shortfall,” he added, thanking this year’s abundant monsoon. “My dream is to double the income of farmers by 2022, and this dream will materialize.”
“Reform, perform, transform, we have made efforts in every sector. We are trying to revive ‘post-offices’ in the country which is becoming irrelevant increasingly due to the advent of technology,” Modi said, claiming that his government has revived sectors such as BSNL which has been failing across the world. For the first time, Shipping Corporation and BSNL have gained operational profit because of our government. The emphasis, Modi said, was in the revival of 118 stuck projects worth Rs 7.5 lakh crore. Modi also touched on the coal scam, saying his government has ensured there’s no corruption in the auction process. “Amidst global economic slowdown, Indian economy is growing,” PM Modi said, adding that the GST would give strength to our economy. The Prime Minister said all parties are to be thanked for its passage. He said, “One nation, one grid and one price- we have worked on this.”
He also stressed on the successful implementation of OROP and other schemes.
The Prime Minister also thanked the people of Balochistan, Gilgit, and PoK. “They have thanked me a lot in past few days, I am grateful to them.”
Modi also spoke about the terror attack in Peshawar saying there were tears in Parliament over the senseless killings. “This is the example of our humanitarian approach, but there are some countries who glorify terrorists,” he said, hitting out at Pakistan.
PM Modi announced that the Government of India will bear Rs 1 lakh medical expenses for poor families. He also announced a 20 per cent increase in pension of freedom fighters.
With chants of Bharat Mata Ki Jai, Vande Mataram, and Jai Hind, the Prime Minister concluded his speech.
