PM’s address at foundation stone laying ceremony of Maharaja Suheldev Memorial and development work of Chittaura Lake at Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh
Speaker: Narendra Modi
Date: 16 Feb, 2021

Namaskar! Governor of Uttar Pradesh, Smt Anandiben Patel ji, the state’s popular and celeberated Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ji, other ministers in UP government, my colleagues in Parliament, MLAs and my dear brothers and sisters! I respectfully salute the sacred land of Bahraich, which is the birthplace of the national hero Maharaja Suheldev who enhanced the importance of the motherland with his valour and where saints meditated. Many best wishes to all of you and the entire country on the occasion of Vasant Panchami! May Mother Saraswati further enrich the knowledge and science of India! Today is considered to be a very auspicious day for knowledge. It is said here सरस्वति महाभागे विद्ये कमललोचने। विद्यारूपे विशालाक्षि विद्यां देहि नमोऽस्तु ते॥ That is, O’ mighty, sage, a huge eye like a lotus, giver of wisdom Saraswati, give me knowledge, I salute you. We all pray that every countryman, engaged in research and innovation to serve humanity, and in nation building get the blessings of Mother Saraswati and they get success. Brothers and sisters, Goswami Tulsidas Ji says in Ramcharitmanas: ऋतु बसंत बह त्रिबिध बयारी i.e., three kinds of wind –the fresh, mild and fragrance – are flowing in the spring season and every organ of life from farms to orchards is joyful. Indeed, wherever we look, flowers are blooming and every person is standing to welcome spring. This spring has brought a new hope, a new zeal for India, leaving behind the despondency of pandemic. In this gaiety, the birth anniversary of Maharaja Suheldev Ji, the great hero who stands as a shield for Indianness, our culture and our ethos, is further enhancing our happiness. Friends, I had the opportunity to issue a postage stamp in memory of Maharaja Suheldev in Ghazipur about two years ago. Today, I have the privilege of laying the foundation stone of his grand monument in Bahraich. This modern and magnificent monument and the development of the historic Chittaura Lake will enhance the blessings of Maharaja Suheldev on Bahraich and will also inspire generations to come. Friends, Today, the medical college built in the name of Maharaja Suheldev has got a new and grand building. The improvement in health facilities in the aspirational district of Bahraich for development will ease the lives of the people here. It will benefit the nearby Shravasti, Balrampur, Siddharthnagar and also help the patients coming from Nepal. Brothers and sisters, The history of India is not just which was written by those who enslaved the country with the mindset of slavery. The history of India is also the one which has been created by the common man of India and which is enshrined in the folk stories of India and which has been carried forward by generations. Today, when India is heralding the 75th year of its independence, there can be no greater opportunity than remembering such great men and saluting them respectfully and getting inspiration from them for their contributions, sacrifices, struggles, heroism and martyrdom. Unfortunately, many heroes who devoted their lives for the protection of India and Indianness were not given due recognition. The new India is rectifying the injustice done to those who created history by those who manipulated in the name of writing history, is doing the right thing and freeing the country from misinterpretations. You see, was Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, who was the first prime minister of the Azad Hind government and the contribution of the Azad Hind Fauj given due importance? Today, we have empowered this identity from Red Fort to Andaman and Nicobar before the country and the world. What was done with Sardar Patel ji, who did the difficult task of unifying more than 500 princely states of the country? Each child of the country knows it very well. Today, the world’s largest statue — the Statue of Unity is of Sardar Patel — is giving us inspiration. Baba Saheb Ambedkar, who played an important role in giving the Constitution to the country, and who was the voice of the deprived, aggrieved and exploited, was also seen only with political prism. Today, all the places associated with Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar from India to England are being developed as pilgrimage centres. Friends, There are many fighters from India whose contributions were not given due respect and recognition. Can we forget what happened to the heroes of Chauri Chaura? The same treatment was meted to Maharaja Suheldev and his efforts to protect Indianness. Maharaja Suheldev’s valour and his heroism might not have been duly recognized in the history books, he always remained in the hearts of the people and the folklore from Awadh and Terai to Purvanchal. Not just heroism, his imprint as a sensitive and development oriented ruler is indelible. During his reign, the way he worked for better roads, ponds and orchards and in the field of education was unprecedented. This perception of him will also be visible in this monument. Friends, A bronze statue of 40 feet will be set up so that tourists will be able to draw inspiration from the life of Maharaja Suheldev Ji. The upcoming museum will have all the historical information related to Maharaja Suheldev. The roads within and around it will be widened. Many facilities like a park for children, auditorium, tourist homes, parking, cafeteria, etc will be developed. At the same, shops will be developed so that the local craftsmen and the artists will be able to sell their wares easily here. Similarly, the importance of this historic Chittaura Lake will enhance further with the construction and beautification of ghats and stairs. All these efforts will not only enhance the beauty of Bahraich but also increase the number of tourists flocking here. The work will be completed soon with the grace of the local deity ‘Mari Maiyya’. Brothers and sisters, The major goal of building all the monuments associated with history, faith, spirituality and culture in the last few years is to promote tourism. Uttar Pradesh is also rich in both tourism and pilgrimage and its capabilities are immense. Work at a large scale is underway in the entire state whether it is the birth place of Lord Rama or Krishna’s Vrindavan, Lord Buddha’s Sarnath or Kashi Vishwanath, Sant Kabir’s Maghar Dham or the birthplace of Sant Ravidas in Varanasi. In order to promote them, Ramayana circuits, spiritual circuits and Buddhist circuits are being developed at pilgrimage places like Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, Mathura, Vrindavan, Govardhan, Kushinagar, Shravasti etc. Brothers and sisters, The impact of the efforts that have been made in the last few years is now becoming visible. Uttar Pradesh is the one state which draws maximum domestic tourists from other states. UP is also among the top three states of the country in attracting foreign tourists. The facilities required for tourists as well as means for modern connectivity are also being developed in Uttar Pradesh. The airport at Ayodhya and Kushinagar’s international airport will be very handy for domestic and foreign tourists in future. Work is going on at dozens of small-scale airports in Uttar Pradesh and many of them are in Purvanchal. Under the Udan scheme, a drive is underway to connect several cities of UP with low cost air services. Besides, many modern and wide roads like the Poorvanchal Expressway, Bundelkhand Expressway, Ganga Expressway, Gorakhpur Link Expressway, Ballia Link Expressway are being built throughout UP. And this is just the beginning of the modern infrastructure of modern UP. Apart from air and road connectivity, rail connectivity of UP is also being modernised. UP is the junction of two large dedicated freight corridors. Recently, a large part of the Dedicated Eastern Freight Corridor was launched in UP. Investors from the country and abroad are excited to set up industries in Uttar Pradesh due to the work which is taking place regarding modern infrastructure. This is not only creating better opportunities for new industries here, but is also providing new employment opportunities to the youth. Friends, The manner in which development work has been carried out in Uttar Pradesh during the Corona period is very important. Imagine, had the situation deteriorated in UP, what kind of statements would have been made at the national and international level. But Yogi ji’s government and his entire team has managed the situation in a very remarkable way. UP was not only able to save the maximum lives, but has done a commendable job also in providing employment to the workers who returned from outside. Brothers and sisters, The work done in the last 3-4 years has contributed immensely in UP’s fight against Corona. UP has managed to significantly reduce meningitis that has troubled Purvanchal for decades. There were 14 medical colleges in UP till 2014, which have gone up to 24 today. The work for AIIMS is also going on in Gorakhpur and Bareilly. Besides, 22 new medical colleges are also being built. The facility of modern cancer hospital in Varanasi is also now being available to Purvanchal. UP is also doing commendable work on the Jal Jeevan Mission to provide water to every household. When pure drinking water reaches home, it will automatically reduce many diseases. Brothers and sisters, Better electricity, water, road and health facilities are directly benefiting the village, the poor and the farmers of Uttar Pradesh. Especially the small farmers, who have very little land, are major beneficiaries of these schemes. In Uttar Pradesh, money has been deposited directly through the PM Kisan Samman Fund in the bank account of about 2.5 crore farmer families. These are the farmer families who were ever compelled to borrow from others to pay electricity bills or buy fertilizer. But our government has deposited more than Rs. 27,000 crores in the bank accounts of such small farmers. With the improvement in the power supply, several problems of the farmers due to lack of electricity, or staying awake throughout the night for bore well water are being addressed. Friends, With the rise in the country’s population, the cultivated land is becoming smaller. Therefore, it is very important to have farmer producers’ organizations (FPOs) in the country. Today, the government is creating thousands of FPOs of small farmers. When 500 farmer families owning 1-2 Bigha of land are organized, they will be stronger than the farmer owning 500-1000 Bigha of land in the market. Similarly, small farmers engaged in vegetables, fruits, milk, fish and many such occupations are now being connected with big markets through Kisan Rail. The new agricultural reforms will also benefit the small and marginal farmers. After the enactment of these new laws in Uttar Pradesh, there have been better experiences of farmers from various places. Efforts were made to spread misinformation about these agricultural laws. The entire country has seen that those who enacted a law to invite foreign companies in the agricultural market of the country are today intimidating the farmers in the name of homegrown companies. Friends, Lies and propaganda for politics are now being exposed. Despite the enactment of new laws, paddy of twice the number of farmers was procured in UP this time as compared to last year. About 65 lakh metric tonnes of food grains have been procured in UP this year, which is almost double the last year. Not only that, Yogi ji’s government has given more than Rs. 1 lakh crores in the past years to sugarcane farmers. Even during the corona period, all possible help was given to the sugarcane farmers so that they do not suffer. The Centre has also given thousands of crores of rupees to the state governments so that sugar mills can make payments to farmers. Yogi ji’s government is committed to ensure timely payment to the sugarcane farmers. Brothers and sisters, The government is making all possible efforts to improve the life of villagers and farmers. The Swamitva Yojana is underway throughout Uttar Pradesh so that the farmers and poor families in villages do not have any apprehension of illegal occupation of their houses. Under the scheme, surveys are going on through drones in about 50 districts of UP. The drone survey has been completed in about 12,000 villages and so far more than two lakh families have received property cards, i.e., Gharauni. That means these families are now free from all kinds of apprehensions. Friends, Today, the poor farmer of the village is watching that a government is running such a big scheme to protect his small house and land. Such a huge protection shield is being provided to every poor, farmer, and villager. Therefore, how can anyone believe those who spread rumours of grabbing of farmers’ land through agricultural reforms? Our goal is to enable every citizen of the country. Our resolve is to make the country self-reliant. We will be engaged in a dedicated spirit for the accomplishment of this resolution. I will conclude with a quatrain of Ramcharitmanas: प्रबिसि नगर कीजे सब काजा। हृदयँ राखि कोसलपुर राजा॥ It means that whatever we do by taking the name of Lord Rama in the heart will have a definite success. Once again bowing to Maharaja Suheldev Ji, I congratulate all of you and Yogi ji and his entire team for these new features. Many thanks!