New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called upon the country to “re-evaluate old thinking and beliefs” and “free society from the pressure of professional pessimists”, saying that the foundation of a “developed India” must be laid in the 25 years of the centenary year of India’s independence.
He said in an article, “The world of the 21st century is looking towards India with many hopes. And to move ahead in the global scenario, we will have to make many changes. We also need to change our traditional thinking regarding reforms. India cannot limit reforms to only economic reforms.” The Prime Minister wrote this article on June 1 during his flight from Kanyakumari to Delhi. After the Lok Sabha election campaign ended, he reached Kanyakumari on May 30 on a spiritual journey. Modi called upon the people to move forward in the direction of improvement in every aspect of life.
In this article published in several newspapers on Monday, Modi said that India’s reforms should be in line with the aspirations of ‘developed India’ by 2047. He also said that reform can never be a one-dimensional process for any country. He said, “Therefore, I have put forward the vision of Reform, Perform and Transform for the country. The responsibility of reform lies with the leadership. Our bureaucracy works on that basis and when people join with the spirit of public participation, we see changes happening.” This article has been published a day before the counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections. The exit polls after the last phase of voting have predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is coming back to power with a huge majority and Modi will take over the reins of the country for the third consecutive time.
Outlining his government’s agenda clearly if it comes back to power, he said, “We must make excellence the core principle to make our country a ‘developed India’. We need to work faster in all four directions i.e. speed, scale, scope and standards. Along with manufacturing, we must also focus on quality and follow the mantra of ‘Zero Defect, Zero Effect’.”
He said, “As a nation, we also need to re-evaluate old thinking and beliefs. We need to free our society from the pressure of professional pessimists. We must remember that freedom from negativity is the first step towards achieving success. Success blossoms in the lap of positivity.” The Prime Minister said that his faith, devotion and belief in the infinite and eternal power of India is increasing day by day and in the last 10 years, he has seen the potential of the country grow even more and has experienced it firsthand.
He said, “Just as we used the fourth and fifth decade of the 20th century to give new impetus to the freedom movement, similarly we should lay the foundation of developed India in these 25 years of the 21st century. The freedom struggle was a time that called for great sacrifice. The present time demands great and continuous contribution from all.” The Prime Minister meditated at the Rock Memorial, a memorial built to pay tribute to Swami Vivekananda in Kanyakumari.
Modi said India’s governance model has become an example for many countries across the world as more than 25 crore people have come out of poverty in just 10 years, which is unprecedented in itself. He said that today innovative practices like pro-people good governance, aspiring districts and aspiring blocks are being discussed globally. He claimed that his government’s efforts have inspired the world by giving priority to the people standing at the last rung of the society.
The Prime Minister said that the ‘Digital India’ campaign is now an example for the entire world, showing how people can use technology to empower the poor, bring transparency and ensure their rights.
He said that cheap data is becoming a means of social equality by ensuring access to information and services to the poor.
He said, “The whole world is watching and studying the democratization of technology, and leading global institutions are advising many countries to adopt key things from our model.” He said, “Today, India’s progress and rise is not only an important opportunity for India but also a historic opportunity for all our partner countries around the world. After the success of the G20, the world is envisioning a bigger role for India.” The Prime Minister said that India is now being accepted as a strong and important voice of the ‘Global South’.
The term ‘Global South’ is generally used to refer to economically less developed countries. Modi said, “The African Union has become a part of the G20 group on India’s initiative. This is going to be a turning point for the future of African countries.” He said that India’s development path fills people with pride and glory, but at the same time, it also reminds 140 crore citizens of their responsibilities.
He said, “Now, without wasting a single moment, we should move forward towards great duties and big goals. We need to dream new dreams, turn them into reality and start living those dreams.” The Prime Minister said that the 21st century world is looking towards India with many hopes and we have to make many changes to move ahead in the global scenario. He said, “We also need to change our traditional thinking regarding reforms.” Modi said, “India cannot limit reforms only to economic reforms. We have to move forward towards reform in every aspect of life. Our reforms should be in line with the aspirations of developed India by 2047.”