From 2014, when PM Modi said he was a ‘Pradhan Sevak’ and not a ‘Pradhan Mantri’ and announced the Planning Commission will be replaced by the ‘Niti Aayog’, PM Modi has used the ramparts of the 370-year-old Mughal-era fort for some key announcements
In his fifth Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort in New Delhi, an “impatient” PM Modi spoke of making a new India and reaching for the skies — literally and figuratively. Amongst his achievements, Prime Minister Narendra Modi listed implementation of GST (Goods and Services Tax), a new tax regime across the country that came into force last year, One-Rank-One-Pension (OROP) for the armed forces, rural electrification and the Swachch Bharat Abhiyaan in which India’s sanitation coverage has doubled and over 7 lakh toilets have been constructed among others.
In a speech that lasted little over an hour, and what will be Narendra Modi’s final speech before elections to the Lok Sabha in 2019, the Prime Minister listed his government’s achievements since 2014. "If we don't look at where we started, we will not be able to how far we have comes If we take 2013 as the base year, then you'll be surprised to learn the pace of progress," PM Modi said.
Highlighting his government’s journey, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Today twice as much roads being built, four times as many houses are being built, record-breaking mobiles are being manufactured, tractors are being sold, planes are being bought, new IIT, new AIIMS are being set up, Skill India centres are being set up, there is a deluge of startups in tier 2 and 3 cities.”
PM Modi spoke of a ‘Navyug’ (new era) and ’Naya Bharat’ (new India) and poetically said ‘we’re breaking barriers and changing our image’
PM Narendra Modi has promised to send an Indian to space by 2022 — this then is one of his electoral promises if elected to a second term next year. “By 2022, when India completes 75 years of independence, India will send a son or daughter to the space with the national flag in hand. With this, India will become the fourth nation to send a human to space.” In 2014, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) tested a Crew Module Atmospheric Re-entry Experiment (CARE), where a space capsule was launched into the atmosphere on the first flight of the GSLV Mk III and recovered from the Bay of Bengal. This was a prototype of the capsule that will be used by Indian astronauts. India plans to call its astronauts ‘Vyomnauts’. ‘Vyom’ is the Sanskrit word for space.
While this announcement has grabbed the most eyeballs, the PM also sowed the seeds of universal health care in India and announced, “ The Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Abhiyan will be launched on September 25 this year, on Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay's birth anniversary. It is high time we ensure that the poor of the country get access to good quality and affordable healthcare.” In its last budget, the Modi government had allocated INR 52,000 crore for its ambitious national health policy. Finance Minister Jaitley had 1.5 lakh health centres will be established to bring health care closer to home. This government had also committed to cover 10 crore families from the economically weaker sections of the society under the National Health Protection Scheme — this has been dubbed by the media as ‘Modicare’.
From 2014, when PM Modi said he was a ‘Pradhan Sevak’ and not a ‘Pradhan Mantri’ and announced the Planning Commission will be replaced by the ‘Niti Aayog’, PM Modi has used the ramparts of the 370-year-old Mughal-era fort for some key announcements. Compared to his last four speeches, today’s speech did not big policy announcements - only reiterations. However, political pundits have already started dissecting the speech for its political impact as the country gears up for elections.
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 "Narendra Modi greets the crowd before addressing the nation during Independence Day celebrations at the historic Red Fort in Del")
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