New Delhi, January 9 – PM Narendra Modi in his address at the 13th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Gandhinagar, which marked the 100th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India from South Africa, said the whole world is looking at India with great expectations and what is needed is confidence and capability.
Here are the 10 most noteworthy points from his speech:
1, Seeking deeper engagement of the Indian diaspora for the country’s growth, he said a whole lot of possibilities are awaiting them in India as it has “risen” with new strength.
2, He described Indian diaspora as “great capital” for the country, and appealed to the community of over 25 million people living in over 200 countries to help transform the nation. “I am convinced that people of Indian origin are our capital and strength,” he said adding that, “if we focus on this segment, we can create a lot of respect for the country globally”.
3, Referring to merging of the PIO and OCI cards through a recent Ordinance and extending visa on arrival facilities for several countries, Modi said, “There used to be a time when you left your beloved country to explore opportunities in different parts of the world…Now I want to assure you that lot many possibilities are awaiting you as time is changing rapidly and India has risen with new strength”.
4, Modi said the rule requiring PIO card holders to visit the local police station for verification every week has been done away with. “This decision shows how much this government values your self respect and dignity”.
5, Talking about issues relating to Overseas Indians, he said a mechanism for travel authorisation through electronic means have been put in place to ease travel to India by the diaspora community. “Now you can do this through online correspondence so that your time is saved and our embassy could be most useful to you”.
6, Invoking Gandhi, Modi said his philosophies and teachings continue to inspire the world when it comes to humane development and resolving various problems facing the world. “When it comes to development while keeping humanity at its core, there is nothing greater than Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophies”.
7, Exhorting the diaspora to participate in the Clean Ganga initiative, he said the exercise is not only important from religious and environmental perspectives but also key to economic development of 40 per cent of India’s population.
8, Modi appeared to take a dig at previous UPA government over its lack of enthusiasm to the annual event which was launched by then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2003. “You did not feel like attending the event. Some people would come because they had to and some people came because they could not help but come”.
9, Modi said the annual event has great significance and it should not be measured in terms of investment only as he referred to the emotional bond between India and its diaspora. “Some people feel that this relation with the pravasis is driven by expectations, I think meeting our own people is a pleasure in itself”.
10, The prime minister also referred to declaration of June 21 as the World Yoga Day by the United Nations following up on his proposal. “The fact that 177 out of 193 UN member countries supported the Indian proposal and the UN making the announcement within 100 days is a small reflection on how the world is ready to embrace India”.
-INDIA TODAY
