President, Modi, others pay floral tribute to ex-PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 96th birth anniversary

On former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 96th birth anniversary, President Ram Nath Kivind and PM Modi on Friday paid floral tributes to the later leader at the Sadaiv Atal Samadhi.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan also paid their tributes to the late Prime Minister in Delhi.

Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said that Vajpayee's efforts to build a strong and prosperous India will always be remembered.

"Tributes to the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his birth anniversary. Under his visionary leadership, he took the country to unprecedented heights of development. His efforts to build a strong and prosperous India will always be remembered," PM Modi tweeted in Hindi.

पूर्व प्रधानमंत्री आदरणीय अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी जी को उनकी जन्म-जयंती पर शत-शत नमन। अपने दूरदर्शी नेतृत्व में उन्होंने देश को विकास की अभूतपूर्व ऊंचाइयों पर पहुंचाया। एक सशक्त और समृद्ध भारत के निर्माण के लिए उनके प्रयासों को सदैव स्मरण किया जाएगा।

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 25, 2020

The Prime Minister will also release a book titled 'Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Parliament: A Commemorative Volume' on Friday (December 25).

The book, published by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, highlights the life and works of the former Prime Minister and contains his notable speeches delivered in Parliament. 
The book also contains some rare photographs from his public life.

The day is also observed as Good Governance Day. The book will be released at a function in the Central Hall of Parliament.

The late leader was conferred Bharat Ratna in 2015. He had also been awarded Pt. Govind Ballabh Pant Award for Best Parliamentarian in 1994.